


Wolf

by t_dragon



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Shapeshifters, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Genderbending, Minor Byun Baekhyun/Park Chanyeol, Minor Kim Minseok | Xiumin/Lu Han, Minor Oh Sehun/Huang Zi Tao | Z.Tao, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-08
Updated: 2018-08-17
Packaged: 2019-01-31 02:35:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 22,873
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12666531
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/t_dragon/pseuds/t_dragon





	1. Chapter I - Those Beautiful Eyes

 Hissing, Jongin dragged the back of his hand over his lips. It came away bloodied - his lower lip was busted. It was nothing compared to the broken ribs and sprained ankle, but it still stung like a bitch.

 Maybe it had been stupid to go to the fight club. Maybe it had been stupid to try to take on a leopard, but Jongin had his reasons. Two of them, actually.

 Two large, round eyes that followed him wherever he went. A pair of eyes that he had only seen in his dreams, but refused to leave him alone.

 Of course he knew what it was. He had somehow managed to meet his soulmate and activated the process, and now he was given clues to whoever it was through his dreams. The only problem was that no matter how hard he was looking, he could not find this person. It had already been a month, and Jongin was slowly going insane.

 And so he took the energy and frustration out in the fight clubs specifically created for his people. Normally, he was careful enough to only go up against people he knew he could win against, like other wolves or bears, but tonight… Tonight he was feeling more restless than usual, and had decided to take on a leopard. And he was now suffering the consequences.

 Sitting propped up against a wall, his good foot pulled up and the bad stretched out in front of him, Jongin tried to keep himself sitting as straight as possible to minimize the pain from the injured ribs. They were already healing, but still hurting quite a lot, and a punctured lung was not something Jongin felt particularly up for right now.

 Dragging a hand through his sweaty hair, Jongin sighed as the dark bangs fell back down into his eyes. He wanted to go home, collapse into his bed and just pass out, but he knew what awaited him back there. All the worry and sympathy and everything that made him feel so trapped and closed in… He knew it came from a place of love, but it was not something he needed right now. Or tolerated.

 So instead, here he was, sitting in an alley and feeling sorry for himself and pouting.

 A melodic laugh was heard from his left, and Jongin glanced up, catching sight of a blonde guy and a black-haired girl walking by. But as the girl glanced back at him, gazes meeting, Jongin froze.

  _Those eyes… Those hauntingly beautiful eyes…_

 Those eyes that had tortured Jongin for four entire weeks were now looking right back at him, and Jongin did not know what to do. His entire body vibrated from the need to jump up and wrap his arms around the girl, but his mind kept it back, reading the hesitant look in the girl’s eyes. After all, what she was seeing was a beaten up guy sitting and bleeding in an alley, and she would probably call for the police if he made a move for her.

 In the middle of this thought, the connection was broken, as the girl moved her gaze away from Jongin’s, continuing on on her way. She was continuing with her life, leaving Jongin behind, and it was like a knife to his guts.

 The wind picked up, carrying the girl’s scent with it, and Jongin took a sniff. His eyelids fell closed as the sweet scent washed over him - interlaced with a faint whiff of himself, marking her as his - but there was something more worrying to it. Something that explained why it had taken a full month for Jongin to get a first glimpse of her.

 Jongin’s soulmate was a human girl.

 Now, for most people, having a normal human as their soulmate was usually seen as a good thing. Not for Jongin, though. Because Jongin himself was a shapeshifter, his other form a wolf, and having a human for soulmate made things so much more complicated.

 First of all, she did not suffer any consequences from not finding her soulmate after the process had begun. Second of all, she could live a happy and fulfilling life even if she refused Jongin - but this would leave Jongin living the rest of his life alone, unable to have any children.

 Clenching his teeth and ignoring the pain radiating through his jaw, Jongin slowly climbed to his feet, and headed home.

 

 Thankfully, the house was dark when Jongin entered, and he breathed out a sigh of relief.

 “Idiot.”

 Jongin jumped into the air, clutching his chest, before hissing over the pain it brought him. Standing leaned against the arch leading into the living room was Jongdae, arms crossed over his chest.

 “You don’t have to scare me!” Jongin muttered, as he began to make his way down the corridor.

 He did not make it far before a hand wrapped around his arm, pulling him to a stop.

 “Jongin. I get that it’s hard, but you really shouldn’t take all the frustration out like this. You look like a mess, honestly,” Jongdae said, and Jongin could hear the worry in his voice.

 And if it was one person who Jongin could stand scolding him, it was Jongdae. Jongin blamed it on them being twins, and having been through so much together. They had a special connection, and that meant that Jongin could not push him away.

 “I’m fine. Really. I might not look like it, but I just need some sleep, Dae,” Jongin said, sighing softly, closing his eyes as Jongdae pulled him down to rest his forehead on his twin’s shoulder.

 “You don’t look fine anywhere, and I’m pretty sure sleep won’t fix it either,” Jongdae mumbled, running his fingers through Jongin’s hair. “At least not all of it. We need to come up with a plan to find your soulmate, preferably before you get yourself killed…”

 Jongin gave a dark kind of chuckle, shaking his head.

 “I saw her today… She’s human.”

 Jongdae stilled, and Jongin could feel more than hear the sharp intake of breath.

 “Are you sure?”

 Jongin nodded his head against Jongdae’s shoulder, suddenly feeling so tired, like he had run for miles. With all the injures from the beating he took earlier weighing him down even more.

 “I caught her scent on the wind, and it was human,” Jongin whispered. “You know I wouldn’t mistake that…”

 Jongdae sighed deeply as he wrapped his arms around Jongin, the breath stirring Jongin’s hair and making it tickle his ear, but he ignored it.

 “Your life is just a real mess, isn’t it?” Jongdae muttered, and it made Jongin give a surprised laugh over the unexpected words. “Honestly, you’re only twenty-one, yet everything keeps fucking up. I’m scared for what’s in my future, and I’m older than you!”

 Jongin reached up to pat Jongdae’s back, a bit comforting, a bit sarcastically.

 “Don’t worry, Dae, I’ve cleaned all the bad stuff away for you.”

 Jongdae snort-chuckled. “True. You’re a real champion, brother. Come on, let’s get you cleaned up and into bed.”

 Jongin allowed himself to be dragged into the bathroom adjoined to Jongdae’s bedroom. He was told to sit down on the toilet as Jongdae fetched some things, and Jongin gently touched his lip to see how bad the cut was by now. His hand was slapped away as Jongdae came back.

 “No touching with those filthy hands,” Jongdae muttered, wetting a towel and beginning to clean the blood and dirt off of Jongin’s face. “So, what was it today? A veteran wolf? Must have been someone skilled, considering how ugly you look…”

 “Leopard,” Jongin answered, yelping as Jongdae dabbed a bit too hard at a scratch.

 “Leopard? Are you-,” Jongdae began, before stopping himself and taking a deep breath. Jongin could almost hear him counting to ten in his head. “Wow. You’re an idiot.”

 “I won?” Jongin mumbled, feeling a bit sheepish. In hindsight, it really had been stupid and careless. But Jongin had needed to an outlet for all of the confused feelings inside of him, and the leopard had been the only one willing to really fight him.

 Jongdae slapped the back of Jongin’s head, before getting back to the cleaning.

 “I don’t even have words to say. Let me know the next time you feel like killing yourself, and I’ll give you a hand,” Jongdae said, tone a bit too even.

 “Sure thing,” Jongin said, earning himself another slap, but there was a spark of amusement in Jongdae’s eyes now at least.

 At Jongdae’s insistence, Jongin recounted for his injuries, and Jongdae helped him treat whatever he could. There was not much conversation, but it was not needed either.

 After Jongdae had finished up, he pushed Jongin towards his bed.

 “Really? We’re not five, Dae,” Jongin deadpanned, but Jongdae merely rolled his eyes.

 “I’m keeping an eye on you, so get in,” Jongdae said, pushing Jongin closer to the bed.

 “It’s not like I’m going to run away and get beaten up again tonight,” Jongin muttered, but he got into the bed, scooting over to one side so Jongdae could get in as well.

 “Wouldn’t honestly surprise me right now,” Jongdae sighed as he climbed into the bed as well, getting himself comfortable, before smiling a bit. “This really feels like we’re kids again. Kinda nice in a way.”

 Jongin could not keep the smile off of his own lips, because Jongdae was right. It did feel nice, it felt _safe_ in a way Jongin had not felt for quite some time now.

 But the thing about their family was that you never truly safe. Even know, Jongin knew that shadows were lurking around the edges, waiting to finish what had been started so many years ago.

 

~*~

 

 Breakfast in the Kim household was a quiet affair. The youngsters were still on their summer break, with only the oldest working. Today was a Saturday, though, so Jongin had to face them all when he was dragged downstairs by Jongdae.

 Even if it usually was silent, everything turned even more so as Jongin showed his face. Three pairs of eyes turned to him, raking over him and scrutinizing his bruised body. It was not the first time this happened, but it still made Jongin feel uncomfortable.

 As soon as Jongin sat down, next to his cousin Baekhyun, Junmyeon marched over to him.

 Being the oldest, Junmyeon saw himself as the temporary pack leader. He was responsible for bringing in the income, which in turn led to food and payed bills and other necessities, and so it was only natural that he felt responsible. Especially as he was the only living family the three younger had left, Chanyeol excluded. But Chanyeol was a special case, in more ways than one.

 Gripping Jongin’s chin, Junmyeon forced him to tilt his head to the left and right, eyes dark and jaw clenched. Without another word, Junmyeon let go, before exiting the kitchen, leaving Jongin frozen in place.

 “What happened to you?” Baekhyun asked after Junmyeon had disappeared, not in the least worried about the scene having unfolded. After all, it was not that rare of a sight nowadays. And Baekhyun was a bit too easy-going to care anyway.

 “Fight club,” Jongdae answered as he sat down across from Jongin, next to Chanyeol. “Hand me the bread, will you, Yeol?”

 Chanyeol did as asked, a neutral expression on his face. He rarely opened his mouth, and even more rarely showed his feelings, and it had been that way since he was young. Jongin had many times wondered what kind of traumas had forced the poor boy to become like this, but Baekhyun had firmly told him and Jongdae to leave it alone. And when Baekhyun was sincere and serious, you listened.

 “Oh? Again?” Baekhyun said, raising a brow at Jongin. “It’s getting more and more frequent, Jonginnie. And you’re looking worse and worse every time you come back.”

 Jongin just hummed noncommittally, accepting the piece of bread Jongdae handed him. He should be used to it by now, it was a long time since Junmyeon stopped caring, but his older brother’s reaction still left his heart hanging heavy in his chest.

 They truly were a broken family.

 

 A week was left until school started again, and it was a week that Jongin spent scouring the city.

 Every now and then, he would catch light whiffs of that enticing scent, but it was never strong enough for him to follow, or the track turned cold before he managed to follow it. Jongdae joined every now and then, to try to help, but he was having an even harder time than Jongin was.

 “It’s because you’re attuned to her,” Jongdae complained one day as they were taking a short break. “You’re not only following her scent, but something else as well. Like her soul left a trace that only your soul can find. Your soulmates, after all, so it’s not really that strange?”

 “I know, Dae, I know,” Jongin sighed, dragging a hand through his hair.

 Most of his injuries were healed by now, but there was still some aching, and it only made the restlessness that Jongin felt even worse. He knew she had been here, he had several confirmations of it, but he was always _too late_.

 “Let’s just get back home, and wait until tomorrow. It’s the end of the summer break, and if we’re lucky, she’s starting uni with us. Okay?”

 A part of him wanted to keep going, but a part also recognized that Jongdae was right. The possibilities of the girl actually attending the same university as they were high, and maybe Jongin’s lucky break would finally come.

 

 Maybe not so surprisingly, it did.


	2. Chapter II - New Friends

 “Are you really that nervous? Looks like you didn’t sleep at all,” Tao teased as Kyungsoo grabbed the taller man’s sleeve, and let him pull her along.

 “Shut up, of course I’m nervous,” Kyungsoo hissed back, but she was honestly too tired to sound angry.

 Kyungsoo had managed to get only handful of hours of sleep the previous night, and it was not only because of nervousness of finally starting the new semester at her new university.

 Honestly, she was more relieved than nervous. Kyungsoo had tried to get into the university for quite some time, and now she was finally here. It was prestigious, one of the top schools in the country, and the program she was going to attend was one of the best in all of Asia.

 Which was kind of obvious considering the amount of students with a different nationality than South Korean. Huang Zitao, the man Kyungsoo was currently clinging to, was actually originally from China. He had moved to South Korea a long time ago, and he and Kyungsoo had been friends ever since.

 “I actually think your eye bags are darker than mine,” Tao continued, whining as Kyungsoo punched his shoulder.

 She knew it was faked, though, to win sympathy. Kyungsoo had no doubt in her mind that Tao barely felt her punch, since he was a wushu master. No matter how little he sounded like it. At least he looked the part most of the time.

 “No way, Panda, I know how to use concealer,” Kyungsoo muttered, holding on tighter to her friend as the masses of people increased around them. They were all headed towards the auditorium, for the welcome speech, and Kyungsoo would rather not lose the Chinese in the crowd.

 Inside of the auditorium, it was a mess of people trying to find places to sit, and friends finding each other after the summer break. The noise was so loud that Kyungsoo wrinkled her nose - she enjoyed silence, not this turmoil.

 “Come on, let’s sit over there,” Tao said, pointing towards a few seats that were still unoccupied. Kyungsoo nodded and held on to Tao, letting him push people aside and keep the way open for her.

 They made it to the seats mostly unharmed - Kyungsoo suffered an elbow to her upper arm - and both collapsed down into them. Slowly but surely, people around them began to find seats and sit down.

 Looking around, Kyungsoo still felt a bit annoyed over the noise, but there was a small smile that she could not repress on her lips, as excitement was bubbling through her veins.

 As Kyungsoo’s eyes were sliding over the people in front of her, a guy sitting a few rows ahead suddenly turned around and locked eyes with her. He was wearing a small frown on his rather handsome face, full lips slightly pursed, but then his eyes widened - not by much, but enough to be noticed - and Kyungsoo wondered why.

 The guy sitting next to him, looking more bored, also turned around to see what his friend was looking at. But his eyes squinted a little as they landed on Kyungsoo, head tilting a bit. Like as if he was  _ evaluating _ her or something.

 How… Strange?

 Just then, a person stepped out onto the large stage in front of them, and the speakers powered up, a voice flowing through them.

 “Hello, everyone! If you could please find a seat, we’re just about to start!” the person cheerfully said, and Kyungsoo automatically looked up her.

 When Kyungsoo looked down again, she noticed that the two guys had turned forwards again, and she frowned, wondering what it was about.

 “Hey, look, isn’t that the guy you saw a few nights back?” Tao mumbled as he elbowed Kyungsoo softly, tilting his head towards one of the doors through which students were still pouring in.

 Looking in the indicated direction, Kyungsoo’s eyes immediately zeroed in on a tall guy pushing his way through the amount of students still trying to find their seats. Full lips that contrasted with his sharp face - yes, it was the same guy.

 But when Kyungsoo had seen the guy a week ago, he had been sitting in an alley, looking as if he had just gotten out of a fight. He had had a busted lip and scratches here and there, but now his face was smooth and completely devoid of even a  _ bruise _ . Insane healing, wow?

 “Yeah, it is,” Kyungsoo mumbled, quickly forcing her eyes to look away. She felt the same strange feeling, that sense of a rope wrapping around her waist and pulling her forwards, and she had half a mind to just get up and run over to him.

 But the other half of her knew that would be weird, so she stayed seated, trying to keep her eyes away, failing every now and then. It was especially hard when the guy sat down a few rows in front of the two guys that had stared at her before, right where it was the most natural for Kyungsoo to look.

 Thankfully, the woman stepped up onto the scene again, and Kyungsoo focused all of her attention on the welcome speech.

 

 “Ah, damn, we barely have any classes together…,” Tao mumbled as he and Kyungsoo were sitting in the cafeteria, comparing schedules.

 “It’s not that strange, really,” Kyungsoo sighed, placing her arms on the table and plopping her head on them. “I mean, we’re not taking the same major…”

 “But still, it sucks!” Tao exclaimed, laying himself across Kyungsoo and making her burst out laughing.

 “Get off me, you’re heavy!” Kyungsoo wheezed, exaggerating her breathlessness.

 “You’re just weak,” Tao said, but he did sit up straight again, encircling Kyungsoo’s upper arm with one hand. “Look at this, no muscles at all… You need to get back to working out!”

 Kyungsoo swatted Tao’s hand away, poking her tongue out at him.

 “Don’t want to, it’s so boring!” she complained, sitting up and leaning back in her chair. “And you’re such a slavedriver as well, so…”

 Tao gave a dramatic little sob as he placed a hand over his heart.

 “What, me? Slavedriver? I only want my best friend to be able to defend herself properly!” he said in a faked sad voice, before switching to his normal one. “And increased stamina helps you be able to sing better, right?”

 Kyungsoo hung her head with a groan, knowing that in the end, she would not be able to escape. Which Tao obviously also knew, since he gave an excited giggle and clapped his hands.

 He really knew her too well…

 

~*~

 

 One of the classes that Kyungsoo did not have with Tao was vocal ensemble class. Since Tao was the only one she knew so far, she was helplessly alone in that class, and Kyungsoo was not a person with an overly extroverted personality. She was actually rather shy, until she was with people she knew and was comfortable with.

 So therefore, Kyungsoo ended up sitting down near the middle of the room, hoping yet dreading that someone would sit down next to her. Other students were still entering the room, chatting alongside themselves, and it was with sinking spirits that Kyungsoo realized that everyone already seemed to know at least someone.

 But, after all, she was joining during the second year, so it was not that strange that friendships had already formed between her classmates…

 “Ugh, you suck so much, I don’t want to sit next to you!” a voice called out, louder than all the other noise, and Kyungsoo involuntarily looked up to see who it was.

 She immediately regretted it, though, when she noticed it was one of the guy that had stared at her a few hours before, during the welcome speech.

 He was walking next to another guy, not the guy he had been sitting with and who had also stared. This new guy had lips that curled like a kitten’s, and a really loud laugh.

 “Oh, really, is that so? Then who are you going to sit next to?” kitten guy asked, and Kyungsoo kind of wanted to sink through the earth when the first guy pointed his thumb in her direction.

 Was this really happening? Do not misunderstand, Kyungsoo had hoped that someone would sit down next to her and save her from loneliness, but this guy? She could already feel a headache forming…

 Three seconds later, though, the guy was sitting in the chair next to her, grinning rather cutely.

 “Hi, I’m Baekhyun,” the guy said, putting his chin in his hands and blinking at Kyungsoo.

 “Uhm, hi, nice to meet you,” Kyungsoo slowly said, not sure if this was a good thing or not. “I’m Kyungsoo.”

 “Nice to meet you, Kyungsoo!” the Baekhyun guy said, and it was not that big of a stretch to imagine him with a wagging tail. Like an overexcited puppy.

 “I can’t believe you’re dissing your own cousin,” kitten guy sighed as he fell down into a chair in front of Kyungsoo, not so discreetly eyeing Kyungsoo before giving her a curled smile. “I’ll warn you now, he’s a traitor and cannot be trusted. I’m Jongdae, by the way.”

 “Go away, she’s my new friend!” Baekhyun pouted at Jongdae before Kyungsoo even got the chance to open her mouth. “Get your own friend!”

 “Nice to meet you, too,” Kyungsoo quickly said, flashing Jongdae a small smile. Both Jongdae and Baekhyun stared at her, before Jongdae burst out laughing.

 “Oh my god, you’re great!” Jongdae wheezed as he tried to calm down, Baekhyun shooting him an unimpressed look.

 Before the puppy got the chance to counterattack, the teacher thankfully stepped into the room and called for the attention of all of the students. At least the kitten and puppy respected studying enough to interrupt their fight, Kyungsoo thought as she turned forwards. It would have been bad if her ‘new friends’ got her into trouble on her first day…

 

 It turned out that Kyungsoo, Baekhyun and Jongdae all took the same major, and had most classes together. And Kyungsoo was still not sure if she liked that or not.

 She quite quickly realized that they liked to bicker just for the hell of it - they claimed to be cousins, but acted more like brothers or best friends - and none of it was pretty serious. She still had to step in a couple of times, though, and was starting to feel more and more like a mom to the both of them than anything else.

 “So, what are you thinking?” Jongdae turned around to ask during their third class, after their teacher had dismissed the class.

 “About what?” Kyungsoo asked as she was picking her things together, feeling a bit drained.

 It was their last class, and she kind of just wanted to go home and collapse in her bed.

 “About the show,” Baekhyun answered in a bored tone, occupied by something on his phone. “Jongdae is trying to snatch you away from me, my new friend.”

 Jongdae snorted and shook his head, rolling his eyes so hard Kyungsoo winced a little.

 “Right, because it’s not like you and me decided on a duet already, asshole,” Jongdae deadpanned, before turning back to Kyungsoo. “You’re new here, and you said your friend took another major, right? I actually have a great idea…”

 “Jongdae,” Baekhyun said in a warning tone, appearing less like a puppy, and more like a… Wolf, or something, all of a sudden.

 Kyungsoo frowned at the sudden change in the normally so energetic boy, but Jongdae merely waved his hand at Baekhyun, not looking away from Kyungsoo.

 “I happen to have a twin brother attending this school as well,” Jongdae began, and Kyungsoo was kind of mistrusting the small smile on his lips. “The teacher said that you can cooperate with people across different majors, right, but it shouldn’t be anything too different? Well, he’s actually a dance major, and happens to be able to sing. I know, it’s a family talent… Anyway, he’s probably stressing over what kind of performance to do, and it breaks my heart seeing my bro suffering, so… I was just wondering if maybe, I don’t know, you might want to help a friend in need out, and do this show with him?”

 That seemed like an awfully… Normal and logic request to make, actually. Kyungsoo was a bit surprised by it. Sure, she had only known Jongdae for a few hours, but still. She had expected worse.

 “Uh…,” Kyungsoo began, chewing on her lower lip. “I’ll… Think about it…?”

 “That’s my girl!” Jongdae faked some sniffing as he held a thumb up. “Yo, Chanyeol! How was your first day?”

 Frowning, Kyungsoo turned, just to have a slight shock to see probably the tallest guy she had ever seen in real life, standing behind Baekhyun, one large hand on the shorter’s shoulder

 “Fine,” the giant - Chanyeol - said, voice deeper than Kyungsoo had anticipated, and more hushed, a small smile on his lips. It was the other guy who had stared at her before! “I’m sorry for scaring you.”

 “No, what, no, it’s fine,” Kyungsoo hurried to say when she realized he was talking to her. “I didn’t hear you come here, is all, no worries!”

 The small smile stretched a few millimeters more, and Kyungsoo had a feeling that Chanyeol barely ever smiled, but that he should be doing it a lot more often.

 “Good. Don’t let Jongdae bully you into doing things,” Chanyeol said, energy so different from the other two boys.

 “What! I’m not bullying her!” Jongdae exclaimed, clasping a hand over his heart. “Jongin needs to get himself a partner, and Kyungsoo seems like a great choice!”

 Kyungsoo snickered over how Baekhyun and Chanyeol rolled their eyes in perfect synchronization.

 

~*~

 

 The first week was pretty hectic, which was rather opposite of what Kyungsoo expected it to be. She had thought that the first week would be a chill week where they would gradually get back into things, but nope.

 No such luck.

 Instead, they were thrown into the water, and Kyungsoo was desperately splashing around in search for a life preserver. Surprisingly enough, Baekhyun and Jongdae - and on some occasions Chanyeol as well - managed to help her stay afloat.

 And Kyungsoo found herself thinking that, maybe Baekhyun sitting down next to her that first day was not such a bad thing to happen.

 Well. At some times, she thought that. At others, not so much. Especially not when she got pulled into arguments between the two guys, and then scolded by teachers.

 “So, have you thought about it?” Jongdae asked one day as they were walking towards the cafeteria during their lunch.

 “Hm, about what?” Kyungsoo asked, spacing out a little. She had not eaten any breakfast, and was  _ extremely _ hungry by now.

 “You know, about the autumn show? And doing a duet or something with my brother?” Jongdae said, unleashing his best pair of puppy eyes on Kyungsoo.

 And Kyungsoo had to admit, they were pretty impressive.

 “Oh, right… Sorry, it’s been so busy it completely slipped my mind,” Kyungsoo said with a little chuckle, waving towards Tao when she saw him get closer. There really was a good thing about having tall friends - you could easily find them in a crowd. “But, I mean, why not? He can’t be worse than you, right?”

 “Jongin got the good genes,” Chanyeol mumbled from behind them, making Baekhyun burst out laughing, and Jongdae to give a scandalized gasp.

 “Oh? Then sure, no problems!” Kyungsoo said, joining in on the laughing as Jongdae threw his hands into the air. “I’ll see you later, bye!”

 Kyungsoo slipped away from the small group to join Tao, smiling brightly at him.

 “Wow, I almost thought you’d forgotten about me,” Tao said in a dry voice, but Kyungsoo could see the pout.

 “What, forget about my favorite panda? Never!” Kyungsoo said as she slipped a hand around Tao’s arm and began to pull him towards the cafeteria. “Now please get a move on, I’m starving!”

 

 A few days later, as Kyungsoo was packing her bag together after the last class of the day, Jongdae suddenly appeared in front of her.

 “Hey, Kyungsoo, my dear, sweet girl,” Jongdae said as he took Kyungsoo’s hands in his own, shaking them slightly. “Are you free now? My brother’s last class has ended as well, so he said we could come visit now so you two can talk and see how it feels!”

 “Uh, okay, sure,” Kyungsoo said, swallowing a bit as nervousness began to set in.

 After all, it was a completely new person she was meeting, so…

 “Great!” Jongdae exclaimed, looking ecstatic, before he quickly helped Kyungsoo with her bag, throwing it over his own shoulder and then dragging her out of the classroom. “Come on, we got a long way to go!”

 Jongdae’s excitement quickly infected Kyungsoo as well, and she could not hold back a small smile as he dragged her to the other side of the school, where the dance studios were.

 After a while, they came to a stop outside of a studio, music being faintly heard through the door.

 “This should be the right place,” Jongdae mumbled, looking at the number on the wall next to the door, before he pushed the door open and motioned for Kyungsoo to go inside.

 Inside of the room, there was one person, who Kyungsoo presumed was Jongdae’s brother. He was squatting down by a bag, a towel over his neck, a white t-shirt clinging to his skin thanks to his sweat, exposing his muscles almost as well as having no shirt on would have. Kyungsoo was a bit impressed, actually, and began to think that maybe this would not be too bad…

 That was until Jongdae stepped into the room as well, and called out for his brother.

 The guy turned around, looking up at them from beneath his sweaty bangs, framing a sharp face with contrasting plump lips, and Kyungsoo took a surprised step backwards, eyes widening.

 This could not be happening… Right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a mess, I'm sorry... Two thirds were written in a few hours, and I don't know, ugh... Might get rewritten in the future!


	3. The First Meeting

 As Jongin hung the towel over his shoulders, he felt that familiar pulling at him, recognizing Jongdae getting closer. There was something more there, though, beneath the familiar bond, that Jongin just vaguely could make out, and that he knew that he  _ should _ know…

 It was not until the doors were pushed open, Jongdae voicing out a greeting, that full realization slammed down into Jongin.

 No way…

 But when Jongin turned around, he saw that  _ of course _ she was there. Standing next to Jongdae, frozen, beautiful eyes wide and filled with something… That looked a lot like fear. And Jongin felt like someone was pushing ice-cold needles into his heart,  _ hating _ that he was the reason for her uncomfortable feelings.

 That was not how it was supposed to be! He was supposed to be tied to her, to be able to make her happy in ways no one else could!

 “Yo, Jongin! This is Kyungsoo, the girl I told you about!” Jongdae cheerfully said, seemingly oblivious to the tension in the room. But as Jongin managed to tear his eyes away from the girl -  _ Kyungsoo _ \- to look at Jongin, he saw Jongdae try to tell him something through his gaze.

_ Act normal. _

 How the fuck was he supposed to act normal when his  _ soulmate _ was standing just a few meters away from him, staring at him in shock and fear?!

 Really, Jongin must be half deity, considering the amount of strength he had to use to pull himself together as quickly as he did, giving a small bow in Kyungsoo’s direction.

 “Ah, hello, nice to meet you,” he said, managing a civil tone, but not a smile.

 He was only human, after all. Or, well, wolf.

 Kyungsoo seemed to snap out of her thoughts, a slight blush creeping onto her cheeks, and the protective side of Jongin wanted to pull her into a hug and never let go.

 “Nice to meet you, too,” she said, and even though Jongin had managed to catch a few words from her here and there - to have her talking to him upclose and personal like this…

 It was almost more than he could handle.

 “Aw, look at the two of you being all shy and cute,” Jongdae suddenly cooed, and Jongin was reminded that his brother was still in the same room as them. “I think you’ll get along just fine! Now, let’s talk a bit about what you should do for the upcoming event, shall we?”

 “Wait, what?”

 Shock ran through Jongin like a bucket of ice cold water being thrown over him. What was Jongdae talking about?

 “Oh, yeah, about the autumn show, I found you a partner so you don’t have to worry about doing it all on your own!” Jongdae exclaimed happily, clasping his hands together as if he was delivering good news.

 He most certainly was not.

 “Kyungsoo said she didn’t mind helping you out, and since she’s new in town, it seems like a great opportunity for the both of you!”

_ Oh _ . She did not mind? Well, then…

 “Thank you, I hope I won’t disappoint,” Jongin said as he gave a bow.

 “Ah, no, please, I’m sure I’ll be more of a liability than you,” Kyungsoo rushed out, also bowing.

 “Okay, yeah, now we’re getting further from cute and closer to awkward,” Jongdae drawled, before motioning for Kyungsoo to step further inside. His hand hovered behind the girl’s back, but never made contact, and Jongin wondered if it was for his sake.

 No matter, he was thankful Jongdae did not touch her.

 Timidly, Kyungsoo stepped into the dancing studio, looking around with her large eyes even larger than normally. She looked so out of place, but at the same time so  _ right _ , and Jongin absently wondered if it was his hormones that were talking. It most probably was.

 “So, anybody have any suggestions?” Jongdae asked, apparently taking control of this meeting. “I suggest a full performance with dancing and singing, to showcase both of your abilities!”

 Both Jongin and Kyungsoo turned to look at Jongdae with wide-open eyes filled with fear.

 “Don’t even try with me, you know how to sing, Jongin, and I’m sure you can learn how to dance, Kyungsoo,” Jongdae said, crossing his arms over his chest and pursing his lips. “After all, you have at least a month and a half, right? You can make an amazing performance in that time, don’t worry! Well, then, moving on, any suggestions for song? Preferably a duet.”

 Jongin was too occupied with watching Kyungsoo twirl a strand of hair around her fingers to really think about Jongdae’s question, and Kyungsoo seemed too occupied with her fidgeting as well, leading Jongdae to finally sigh and shake his head.

 “Honestly, you guys, I know it’s the first time you meet, but seriously?” Jongdae asked, sounding exasperated in the kind of way that Jongin knew was not really. “You didn’t act like this with me the first time we met, Kyungsoo!”

 Kyungsoo blinked at Jongdae, before a small smile curved her full lips, and Jongin could suddenly not breathe.

 “True, but Chanyeol was right about the genes,” Kyungsoo said, a note of teasing laced into her voice, and Jongin frowned in confusion.

 A frown that deepened even more when Jongdae gasped and placed a hand over his heart.

 “Wow! Here I am, trying to help, but I’m honestly feeling so attacked right now!” Jongdae exclaimed, making Kyungsoo’s smile widen a tiny bit more.

 “Wait, what did Chanyeol say?” Jongin asked, completely lost in the discussion.

 Kyungsoo’s cheeks turned even more pink as she quickly glanced at Jongin, then down at the floor.

 “Ah, nothing really…,” she mumbled, and Jongin almost whined in protest.

 Before he was able to say anything more, though, Jongdae suddenly clapped his hands together, making Kyungsoo jump a little in surprise.

 “There we have it! I know the perfect song!” Jongdae burst out, grinning so widely his eyes almost completely disappeared. “Your sassiness will work perfectly for it, and Jongin’s natural inner performer will make it shine! Ah, I am so smart!”

 Jongin felt very suspicious at Jongdae’s sudden happiness, trying to come up with a song that match the ‘criterias’ Jongdae had listed, but no such look. Glancing over at Kyungsoo, he saw that she also seemed very hesitant, seemingly understanding that this could be either very good, or very bad.

 “Are you going to tell us…?” Kyungsoo finally asked, as Jongdae just stood smiling.

 “Trouble Maker’s ‘Now’, of course!”

 

 Even after Kyungsoo had already left, and Jongin and Jongdae were on their way out of the dance studio, Jongin could still barely wrap his head around it all.

 “You’re kidding, right?” Kyungsoo had said after a few seconds of stunned silence, and Jongin might have felt offended, if not for the fact that he was about to say the exact same thing.

 “Hyuna-yah and Hyunseung-ah’s ‘Now’?” Jongin continued, disbelief heavy in his voice. “Are you insane? Wait, no, I know you are, but  _ this _ insane?”

 Jongdae looked very peeved by the resistance he was meeting, back to crossing his arms over his chest.

 “It’s a logical choice! I think your voices match it well, and it’s an impactful choreo! You like a good challenge, Jongin, and this is a great one! And Kyungsoo, I haven’t known you for that long, but from what I’ve seen, I think it fits you.”

 After some more stunned silences and gentle insults, they had crowded behind Jongdae’s phone to watch the dance practice of said song. Jongin had to admit, it was a pretty cool choreo, and it would probably attract attention if they managed to pull it off… But at the same time, it was a pretty intimate choreo, and even though Jongin was constantly fighting against the need to pull Kyungsoo close, he did not know how she would feel about being so close and touchy-feely.

 It was a frustrating concept, not knowing if she felt anything back, when he knew that another wolf would feel the same as he did. Was she completely oblivious? Did she feel anything at all? How did it work for the human in a soulmate relationship? Jongin needed scientific research and discoveries, but he had nothing, only Kyungsoo next to him, and her reactions were hard to read.

 “So, what do you think?” Jongdae asked once the video was over, bringing Jongin back to the present.

 “Well… The choreo is doable, the amount of time is enough to learn it, though how much time put into is dependant on how good we are naturally…,” Jongin mumbled, not missing the way Kyungsoo was chewing on her lower lip a bit worriedly. As if he missed anything she did when they were standing so close he could feel the warmth of her body wash over him…

 “The lyrics isn’t really a problem, the dancing is,” Kyungsoo muttered, frowning, and it made Jongin smile.

 “I can teach you how to dance, and if it’s too much, I can simplify it,” Jongin responded, all of a sudden filled with a confidence he had not felt before. Dancing, he knew. Dancing, he could do. Through dancing, they might be able to connect, and maybe Jongin did not have to live out the rest of his life as a lonely eunuch. Jongin could not help but wince a little at that thought. He hoped Kyungsoo did not notice.

 She was looking at him - more like staring - searching for something, her lower lip still being abused by her teeth, and Jongin wanted to free the poor thing. And maybe nibble a bit on it as well- nope, he was not going there right now, he was having enough as it was already!

 Finally releasing her lip, Kyungsoo inhaled slowly, before nodding.

 “Okay. If you think we can do it, okay. Let’s give it a shot.”

 Shocked, Jongin could not do much more than stare at the girl. He had not thought she would actually say yes, he had hoped, but not believed. But she had, and now Jongin was supposed to dance a touchy-feely choreo with his soulmate whilst practically unable to touch her that way.

 What had he gotten himself into?

 “Well, then that’s settled!” Jongdae exclaimed, clapping his hands, and it made Jongin jerk as he had temporarily forgotten his brother was still there. “I’m guessing you’ll need some time to go through the choreo and learn it, Jongin, so you then can teach Kyungsoo, and I guess you’ll have to do the same with the lyrics to be able to teach Jongin, Kyungsoo, so exchange numbers and then get on with it!”

 Cheeks back to a faint pink, Kyungsoo pulled her phone out of her back pocket, before unlocking it and handing it over to Jongin. It was warm, and Jongin could feel his own cheeks heat up as he tried not to think about what body part had warmed the phone in his hand up, pushing all thoughts away as he tried to remember his own number and punch it in.

 After having gotten it back, Kyungsoo finished the contact, then called it, and a faint vibrating sound was all that was heard as Jongin’s phone was lying on top of his bag.

 Bidding them goodbye with a small bow, Kyungsoo had then left, leaving the twins alone.

 “No need to thank me,” Jongdae had smirked, patting Jongin’s back, and even though Jongin kind of wanted to strangle him, he had instead pulled Jongdae into a tight hug.

 “Fuck, I hate you so much…,” Jongin had whispered against Jongdae’s shoulder, fingers twisted in his brother’s shirt trembling, and Jongdae had just chuckled and hugged him back.

 “What am I supposed to name her?” Jongin asked as he and Jongdae made their way out of the dance studio, Jongin’s eyes glued to his phone where he currently was trying to come up with a fitting name.

 “‘Soulmate’ might be a bit forwards, so I suggest something simple, like ‘Kyungsoo-yah’?” Jongdae said with a shrug. “Or Kyungsoo-noona, that would be fun!”

 “Kyungsoo-noona…,” Jongin mumbled to himself, typing it in and then saving the contact. Smiling, he looked at the contact once more before pocketing the phone. “Can’t believe she’s older, though, she looks so cute and small…”

 “Yeah, you haven’t seen her in class, she can be pretty scary if she wants to…,” Jongdae muttered, faking a shiver that had Jongin glare at him.

 “Not her fault you and Baek are too wild,” Jongin said. “I’m proud of her for not letting you get out of hand!”

 “Said like a real boyfriend!” Jongin exclaimed, before his grin turned mischievous. “Oh, wait… You’re not.”

 At that, Jongin felt his previous cheeriness drain out of him, making him deflate in his shoulders slump.

 “No need to tell me, I know… Just being so close but unable to touch is nearly unbearable… I can still smell her scent, and it is driving me insane… Thankfully, it’s not as bad as before I knew who she was, now I at least can get some relief just by talking to her. It’s… Strange.”

 Jongdae side-eyed Jongin, before he shook his head.

 “Honestly, from what you’ve told me and what I’ve seen, this whole soulmate business seems horrible, and I kinda wish I never meet mine. I mean, what’s so great with kids, anyway?”

 Jongin gave a small smile at that. “You adore kids. Just pray you’ll meet a nice wolf lady, so you don’t have to chase her around, and think about how you act all the time so as to not scare her away. Ugh, my life really is a mess…”

 “I know, but at least you have her number now,” Jongdae said softly, patting Jongin’s back, and Jongin nodded.

 “At least I have her number now… It’s a step forwards, even though it’s a small one.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, everything is seriously crazy, and I'll try to update again as soon as possible, but between Christmas and two fest fics, I don't know when that'll be, so bear with me~!  
> And yes, Trouble Maker's 'Now' is what KaiSoo will dance/sing to, look forwards to it, and if you don't know it, look it up ;)


	4. Chapter IV

 “So… What do you know about Kim Jongin?”

 Kyungsoo thought she was being far from obvious, dipping a fry into ketchup as she asked the question a bit off-handedly. She really tried hard to seem nonchalant, but…

 Tao obviously did not buy it. His raised eyebrow told Kyungsoo that she was in for a ride.

 “Kim Jongin, as in the dancer Kim Jongin? God-like body and a face that could easily grace the cover of a magazine? I thought you didn’t like handsome boys?”

 Kyungsoo had taken a sip of her coke, and promptly choked on it. Tao was lucky she managed to swallow it, and not spit it all over him.

 “What, like? I don’t like him, I’m asking about him!” Kyungsoo blabbered as soon as she managed to free her airways. “Why do I have to like him to ask about him?”

 “Why else would you ask about him?” Tao countered, pointing at Kyungsoo with one of his own fries.

 “Because his brother convinced me to team up with him for the autumn festival thingie,” Kyungsoo muttered, leaning back and poking at her burger. Maybe she should cut the fast food now that she was supposed to learn a whole choreography…?

 Nah. The greasy goodness was too good.

 “Really? Shit, I’d forgotten Jongdae and Jongin are twins… Sure don’t look like it,” Tao mumbled to himself, before focusing back at Kyungsoo. “So you’re going to perform with  _ the _ Kim Jongin, huh? What are you going to do, dance or sing?”

 “Both,” Kyungsoo sighed, before taking a bite of her burger.

 “And?” Tao prompted with a hand roll as Kyungsoo kept chewing. She looked up at him in confusion, mouth still full. “What song, idiot?”

 Kyungsoo kicked Tao’s shin beneath the table as she finished chewing her food and swallowed, smiling a little over the hiss Tao let out. He might be a wushu god, but shoes to the shin bone was not nice.

 “Trouble Maker’s ‘Now’,” Kyungsoo quickly answered, before stuffing some fries into her mouth.

 Tao stared at her with this strange straight face, before he wiped his hands on some napkins and pulled out his phone. Suspecting what he was doing, Kyungsoo winced and got back to stuffing her face, as familiar notes filled the air at a low volume. With his eyes completely trained on the screen, Tao watched the music video from start to end, before he locked his phone and put it back in his pocket. By now, Kyungsoo had finished off most of her fries, as well most of her burger, and was feeling quite sick. But if it was because of the food or the music, she did not know. Maybe it was both.

 “So… You’re going to dance and sing that song, huh? With Mr. Perfect himself?” Tao asked, his voice a note higher than usual. Kyungsoo winced yet again, before pouting.

 “Try, at least… It’s a straining choreo, it seems like…”

 Finally, Tao snapped, leaning over the table with a manic kind of glee in his eyes.

 “ _ You’re going to motherfucking grind against Kim Jongin! How are you this lucky?! _ ” Tao screeched, thankfully keeping his voice so low that Kyungsoo could barely hear what he said, but it still attracted some weird stares from around the restaurant.

 Groaning, Kyungsoo pressed her hands against her face, remembering to put use the back of her hands instead of her palms,  _ really _ not needing a breakout right now.

 “I don’t feel lucky!” Kyungsoo whined, peeking at Tao between her fingers. “How the hell am I supposed to do this? I don’t even know him!”

 Tao seemed to calm down, but Kyungsoo could still see the bubbling energy beneath the surface from how he almost seemed to be vibrating in his seat.

 “Don’t worry, he seems very professional about these things! Have you met him yet? Was that why you were late?”

 Kyungsoo nodded.

 “How was he, then? I’ve only seen him in the middle of school, and don’t really know what he’s like,” Tao prompted, poking at Kyungsoo’s palms with one long finger.

 “Well,” Kyungsoo said with a sigh, sitting back and dropping her hands from her face. “He seems like a very quiet person, which is strange considering Jongdae. But I guess Jongdae got all the loudness… Uhm, he seemed very surprised, though I thought Jongdae had talked to him about this deal… He looked at me a lot, and it felt as if he was trying to make sure I wasn’t uncomfortable, if that makes sense?”

 Tao nodded throughout Kyungsoo’s recollection, a grin spreading on his lips.

 “Seems like a chill dude, then. Coupled with his insane looks, I say go for it!”

 Kyungsoo’s cheeks were suddenly burning as she sputtered. “Wh-what do you mean, ‘go for it’? We’re collaborating for the festival!”

 Tao placed his elbow on the table, making sure there was a napkin between it and his jacket, propping his chin up on his hand and smirking.

 “Mhm… I mean, I don’t think it’s unheard of that feelings bloom between people exposed to such intimate positions… Just let it grow naturally, sweetie, and do what your heart tells you to!”

 “You’re the worst best friend,” Kyungsoo muttered as she took another sip, scowling harder as Tao merely winked at her.

 

 In the end, Kyungsoo did not manage to get too much information out of Tao, seeing as the boy only knew rumors about Jongin, and not something substantial. Charming, quiet, hard-working - these were all things Kyungsoo already knew.

 So Kyungsoo ended up going home empty-handed - yet with an aching belly - and plopping herself down onto her bed with a sigh. She was still feeling a bit blown away about what had transpired earlier, and not sure what she thought about it.

 Because Kyungsoo was positive that Jongin was the guy she had seen about two weeks ago, beaten and bloodied, crouching in a dark alley and looking dangerous. But there had not even been a single scar on him when she saw him today, neither had there been any noticeable wounds when she first saw him. And that did not make any sense.

 Plus the strange feeling she kept feeling whenever Jongin was around, like wanting to be close to him. She had had a hard time keeping to herself, making sure Jongdae was between them for most of the visit, when all she wanted to do was to stand next to Jongin and let his warmth and presence wash over her.

 Kyungsoo actually blushed as she remembered the song they were going to dance and sing to, burying her head in her pillow. She would have to get up close and personal to Jongin, and she really had no idea what she would do when she was. She disliked the idea of doubting her self-control, but there was something strangely enticing about the boy that drew her in…

 Completely not prepared for it, Kyungsoo almost jumped out of her bed as her phone vibrated next to her. With her heart pounding in her throat, Kyungsoo picked up her phone, ready to yell at Tao for scaring her.

 But the text she had gotten was not from Tao. Oh no, not at all.

 

**From Kim Jongin:**

We should schedule practices at least once a week, which day works best for you?

 

 Concise and straight to the point, and for some reason it made Kyungsoo smile. He was so different from his brother, though they apparently were twins. A bit like day and night, but Kyungsoo felt like they were probably more alike than what it seemed on the outside.

 

**From Me:**

All days work for me, so I’ll leave the choice up to you!

 

 After Kyungsoo pressed ‘send’, she wondered if the exclamation mark sounded a bit too excited, but there was no take-back, it was already done.

 Expecting the answer to take a while, Kyungsoo put her phone down, just to feel it vibrate next to her thigh the very next second.

 

**From Kim Jongin:**

How about Wednesdays as a start?

 

**From Me:**

Sounds good!

 

 Yeah, Kyungsoo really needed to dial down on the exclamation marks… She did not want Jongin to get the wrong idea, after all…

 But what was the wrong idea? She was feeling rather excited about their collaboration, though she was terrified about the dancing.

 Though there was always the chance that Jongin would take it that Kyungsoo was overly excited him… But she did not think he would think that way. And she could not completely deny the fact that she was… Something. Feeling  _ something _ about Jongin. There was a pull between them, and Kyungsoo had always believed that things like that only existed in stories, but apparently not.

 Did that mean they were meant to be?

 Feeling her entire face go up in flames, Kyungsoo slapped her hands over her cheeks, giggling a bit manically over her silly thoughts. She was taking things way too far now, and really needed to dial  _ everything _ back a bit. Just the thought of turning into one of those horribly cheesy girls who thought this guy was Mr. Right just because there was some attraction and stuff made Kyungsoo grimace, and she almost sent a text to Tao begging him to end her if she ever turned full cheese.

 Before she could, though, another text came in.

 

**From Kim Jongin:**

Great! See you tomorrow then!

 

 Kyungsoo’s eyes almost popped out of her head as she quickly fumbled with her phone to find the calendar, only to confirm that yes, it was Tuesday today, and yes, it was Wednesday tomorrow. She then let out a sound halfway between a squeal and a choke, collapsing onto her bed and rolling over onto her stomach.

 “Yo, are you okay?!” a voice called out worriedly as Kyungsoo’s door was opened, and she lifted her head to look up at her brother, Seungsoo, looking around with wide eyes, chest heaving as if he had run from wherever he had been.

 People always said that they looked freakishly alike, like twins, even though Seungsoo was older. On photos from when they were babies, they were almost impossible to tell apart, and even though they had grown up now, the likeness was still uncanny. It was obvious they shared the same genes.

 “Uh, yeah, fine,” Kyungsoo answered, feeling slightly embarrassed about her outburst. “Tao was being stupid and sent me a silly text.”

 Seungsoo narrowed his eyes, and Kyungsoo knew he did not fully buy it, but thankfully he dropped the subject.

 “Uh-huh… I’m making dinner, you want some?”

 “No, thank you, I ate with Tao a little while ago,” Kyungsoo said, giving her brother a sweet smile. He raised a brow at her.

 “You really need to cut down on the junkfood, it’s not good for you,” Seungsoo said, and Kyungsoo’s smile turned into a pout. “Tao can eat whatever he likes since he train insanely much, so either cut down on the junk, or join him.”

 “Ugh, why does everybody think I need to start training again…,” Kyungsoo muttered, before putting her face down again, cheek against her cover so she could see Seungsoo still. “I might start training again, I’m actually going to start dancing.”

 Three seconds, Seungsoo stared at her. Three seconds he blinked, otherwise unmoving, as he just  _ stared _ at her. Then he burst out laughing so hard he bent over, hand gripping the handle of the door to try to keep from falling to the floor.

 “Stop laughing, it’s true…,” Kyungsoo mumbled, cheeks starting to heat up again. “I’m actually doing a project with a dancer, we’re going to sing and dance and showcase it during this autumn thingie the university has…”

 “Y-you… You’re going to sing  _ and _ dance?” Seungsoo wheezed, laughter having died down enough for him to start being able to get some air into his lungs again. “Wow, has she seen you dance?”

 Kyungsoo’s cheeks burned hotter as she suddenly found the print on her cover extremely interesting, following it with both eyes and fingers. Wow, who knew lines of various tones of grey could be so amazing?

 “Well, no, he hasn’t…,” Kyungsoo basically breathed out, hoping and wishing Seungsoo did not hear the gender pronoun.

 But of course he did.

 Immediately, he straightened up, humor clearing from his face as he suddenly looked ten times scarier. Not that Kyungsoo really thought he looked scary - she had grown up with the guy, and knew he was as far from scary as one could be.

 “‘He’? You’re going to dance with a guy? You’re doing a project with a boy? A real boy?” Seungsoo questioned, and Kyungsoo pursed her lips. Was it that hard to believe, really? She thought she was cute enough…

 “Yes, a real boy, not Pinocchio. Why?” she asked, exasperated. “You don’t have a problem with Tao, but now you go protective brother?”

 “Huang Zitao is gay, I could see it from a mile away,” Seungsoo exclaimed, arms crossing over his chest. “This guy I know nothing about. How do you know him? How did you meet? Who are his parents?”

 Kyungsoo rolled her eyes, wondering if she should tell Seungsoo that she think she saw Jongin for the first time a few weeks ago, looking dangerous and with injuries in a dark alley, but decided against it. Maybe not the best thing to say…

 “He’s a dancer, goes to the same university as me, twin brother of a classmate of mine,” Kyungsoo sighed, sitting up properly in her bed. “His brother asked if I minded collaborating with him, and I said that I could meet him and see, which I did today, and, well… We decided to collaborate? And how the hell am I supposed to know about his parents?”

 “Classmate?” Seungsoo echoed, obviously disregarding the rest. “You’ve made friends already?”

 Kyungsoo gave a small smile at Seungsoo’s almost proud, and actually relieved, voice.

 “Yes, I have. Jongdae and Baekhyun, cousins and annoying as few,” she answered. “They’re great, though. Helped me a lot lately, to get into things and stuff, so I don’t fall behind in class.”

 Seungsoo nodded slowly as he chewed on the inside of his cheek, and Kyungsoo could almost see the cogs working inside of his head.

 “That’s… Great. Really, it is. Just be careful? You’re not a teenager anymore, but boys in their early twenties aren’t that much better than teenage boys…”

 Kyungsoo could not help the small giggle that slipped through her lips at the suggestion.

 “Ew, no thank you! For the record, I think Baekhyun is taken and batting for the other team, and Jongdae… Sweet guy, but not my style. Also, Tao taught me well, I won’t let anyone try to take advantage of me.”

 Seungsoo gave a faked sob, wiping away an imaginary tear from his cheek as he smiled a wobbly smile.

 “That’s my girl, your brother is so proud!”

 “Daddy! Food!”

 A short boy walked up next to Seungsoo, pulling at his pant leg with a pout. Seungsoo’s stance immediately changed, softening remarkably as he leaned down to pat the boy’s head.

 “Sorry, Taesoo! Daddy thought something bad had happened to Kyunggie, so he had to go check on her! I’ll get right back to making your food now, okay?”

 Taesoo nodded up at his father with a stern expression, before rushing over towards Kyungsoo with a giant smile.

 “Kyunggie!” the boy more or less screamed, and Kyungsoo could not help but laugh at her nephew. “Hug!”

 Scooting to the edge of her bed, Kyungsoo picked Taesoo up from the floor and placed him on her lap so she could wrap her arms around him, and he could do the same to her.

 “Did you miss me already, Tae?” Kyungsoo mumbled into Taesoo’s hair - it still smelled a bit like baby, even though he was already three years. Her nephew nodded, and Kyungsoo chuckled. “But I saw you this morning?”

 Pulling back, Taesoo looked up at Kyungsoo with a small pout and eyes so round and large - apparently they were a dominant gene in the Do family.

 “Why can’t you stay home and play with Tae all day?” Taesoo asked in a whiny voice, and Kyungsoo cooed as she pulled him closer again, rocking back and forth.

 “I wish I could, but I have to go to school so I can get a good job and make lots of money, so I can buy all the ice cream for you!” Kyungsoo answered, looking down at Taesoo again. “My little Tae loves ice cream, don’t you?”

 Taesoo gave her a small smile and a nod, as he leaned his head against her chest and stayed in place. He was a bit clingy with people he loved, unfortunately having lost people close to him already. If Kyungsoo ever ran into the poor boy’s mother, she would give her a piece of her mind, and it would not be pretty…

 Suddenly, Kyungsoo could smell something wrong, and looking up, she saw her brother watching their interactions with adoration in his eyes. Still not having moved to finish Taesoo’s dinner.

 “Uh, Seungsoo?” Kyungsoo said, grinning awkwardly. “Is something burning?”

 With a sort-of child-safe curse, Seungsoo dashed away from Kyungsoo’s room, leaving his sister and his son laughing at him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Omg, this was so hard to write, I had like half of it finished for a long time before I managed to finish all of it, and I don't know what I think about it, but it's a half Christmas miracle that I actually FINISHED, so yeah ;-; whatever! Hope you liked bro!Soo, nephew!Soo, and Tao! Next chapter is back to Jongin, and some dancing!  
> Also, how do you format texting properly, ahaha... I barely ever have texting... :')


	5. Chapter V

 Jongin had been a nervous wreck the entire day.

 Ever since Kyungsoo had said that she was okay with practicing on Wednesdays (and Jongin had of course not suggested the day because it was the next day, of course not!), Jongin had been both ecstatic and anxious. He wanted Tuesday to hurry up and end, but at the same time, he wished Wednesday would never come.

 In the end, his restlessness became too much for his family, and Jongdae, Baekhyun and Chanyeol dragged him out into the forest behind their house to release some pent-up energy.

 “Why are you like this? She basically agreed to spending time with you, alone, tomorrow!” Jongdae exclaimed as they wandered between the trees. “It’s basically a  _ date _ , and you’re acting as if she shot you down?”

 “He’s nervous, Dae,” Baekhyun said with a lopsided grin, grabbing hold of a young tree and swinging around it. “It’s his first date, after all!”

 As they were talking, Jongin found a thicker trunk that he wrapped his arms around, pressing his cheek against the rough bark.

 “Then why does he look like a child who had his candy stolen?” Jongdae asked, pointing at the now pouting Jongin. “He should be happy, even if he’s nervous!”

 “Because it’s Jongin, he’s probably having doubts and stuff,” Baekhyun drawled as he walked over to Jongin, ruffling his hair affectionately. “I don’t think you have to worry, though, she’s sure to like you!”

 Jongin sighed as he pushed himself away from the tree and began to wander around, kicking fir cones around.

 “You guys just don’t get it… She’s my soulmate, the one meant for me, and I really can’t mess it up! Especially not as she’s a human as well, and can just go on with her life and live happily without me, if she decided I’m too creepy or strange, or  _ not her type _ , while I’ll slowly fade away…,” Jongin said, feeling more and more despaired the more he talked. “For real, there’s this feeling inside of me, telling me that she’s all I’ll ever need, that I need to always be close to her, and until you guys meet your own soulmates, you won’t understand…”

 Baekhyun and Chanyeol exchanged glances as Jongdae crossed his arms over his chest and  stepped in front of Jongin.

 “Bro, you gotta chill. I think you’re putting too much into this, and you need to take a step back,” Jongdae said, using a finger to push Jongin back a little as if to illustrate his point. “Like you said, she’s your soulmate, so she’s perfect for you, and that means you’re perfect for her as well, right?”

 “But she doesn’t need me-”

 “Kim Jongin, listen to me!” Jongdae snapped, and Jongin raised an eyebrow. “She might not need you to be able to have kids, she might be able to love someone else, but it won’t be the same as loving  _ you _ or having kids with  _ you _ . It’ll be a watered down version of what  _ you _ could give her. Take a step back, chill a little, and start to show her what you can give, and I’m sure she’ll fall for you in no time at all!”

 “Plus, we don’t know exactly how everything affects her,” Baekhyun butted in, slinging an arm over Jongdae’s shoulders as they stood in front of Jongin. “She might be feeling stuff too, although not as much as you do. Considering how you can smell you on her, she’s practically marked in a sense, so her body must react at least a little bit to everything as well.”

 “I… I guess…?” Jongin mumbled, crossing his arms over his chest a bit defensively. “So, what do you recommend?”

 “Just be yourself!”

 “Do what feels right!”

 Jongin pinned Baekhyun and Jongdae with a disbelieving stare.

 “You want me to push her up against a wall and bite her neck to mark her as mine? Because that’s what I’ve been holding myself back from doing.”

 “Befriend her,” Chanyeol suddenly said as he joined the small group, voice barely above a low rumble. “Use your human side, not your wolf one.”

 Jongin looked at Chanyeol for a second before sighing.

 “Why is it that whenever you actually speak, it’s to say something really wise?” Jongin asked exasperatedly, earning himself a small smile from the taller.

 “Limited use of words means I put more thought into each and every one,” Chanyeol simply said, shrugging a little.

 “Well, thanks, Chanyeol, you just comforted me better with less words than these two did,” Jongin said, nodding his head in the direction of his brother and cousin, both who began to protest loudly.

 In the end, it evolved into a wrestling match - Jongdae and Baekhyun against Jongin, as Chanyeol opted for sitting out, leaning against a tree nearby and watching the children play. And even with his height advantage, and his fluidity from dancing, Jongin had a hard time against two opponents. Baekhyun was not that far behind in shoulder width, and Jongdae was a sneaky little shit, so before things turned too brutal, they decided to call it a draw and head back home as the stars began to twinkle in the sky.

 With his heart feeling a bit lighter and his mind a bit eased, Jongin went to bed later that night, a more subdued excited feeling coursing through his veins. He was going to see Kyungsoo the next day, they would start practice, and he would try to become friends with her. Take it slow and easy, even as the wolf inside of him howled in annoyance and frustration over it. It was the wolf that got him into this mess, so the wolf could just shut up as the human dealt with the situation.

 

~*~

 

 Jongin’s heart was almost vibrating in his chest, as he waited for Kyungsoo. School was over for the day, and he was in the dance studio, which the girl could walk into at any moment. They had exchanged texts earlier that day, to confirm everything, and Jongin had gotten a text from Jongdae a few minutes ago as well, telling him that Kyungsoo was on her way.

 So now, all he could do was wait, but it was taking its toll on him.

 Not knowing what else to do, having pestered the group chat with crying emotes and gotten a few stupid doge memes from Baekhyun, Jongin put some random music on and began to stretch. He was going to stretch later with Kyungsoo anyway, so he really did not have to now, but there was something about the familiar moves that helped calm him down. He had been dancing for most of his life, and it had always been a comfort for him, so it was really not that strange when he ended up doing some twirls and improvised choreography.

 It even allowed him to partially ignore the way his heart changed its rhythm, adjusting to something else and letting him know as its counterpart was getting closer and closer. He heard the door open, felt the gaze on him, but he did not stop until the last tones of the song faded, to be replaced by another song.

 Hurrying over to the speakers, Jongin took the time to get his breath back as he stopped the music. He had not gone full out, he was barely even winded, but he was grateful for the extra air when he looked up at Kyungsoo and had it all knocked out of him.

 She was dressed in jeans and hoodie, sneakers on her feet, and her hair was pulled into a messy bun. She looked a bit tired, but still so beautiful, and obviously absolutely breathtaking.

 “Wow, you’re really good at dancing!” Kyungsoo said, her cheeks turning a bit pink as if she had not meant to blurt it out. “I mean, of course you are, you’re a dance major, I just- You dance really well. Better than I expected.”

 And really, Jongin stood no chance. There was no way he could stop himself from smiling, heart increasing rapidly in size in his chest until it felt as if it was choking him - but in a very good and fluffy way.

 “Thank you,” he shyly said, scratching behind his ear and feeling his wolf part excitedly and proudly waving its tail. “I try my best… Uh, should we start?”

 Kyungsoo nodded, dropping her backpack next to where Jongin had put his, before walking over to the middle of the room. Just the tips of her fingers peeked out from beneath the sleeves of her hoodie, and Jongin could not help but internally coo at the sight.

 Walking over to stand next to the girl, Jongin forced himself to focus and put himself into dance teacher mode, because he was serious about this performance. Even though it had been a ploy by Jongdae to get them together, Jongin was serious about putting on a good show at the festival, and he would work as hard as he could for it. Which probably would have been a lot easier had his partner not been his soulmate, but Jongin accepted the challenge!

 “We’re just going to go through the movements first, so you learn them, and then we’ll apply it to music when you feel ready for it. Sounds good?” Jongin asked, looking at Kyungsoo’s reflection in the large mirror in front of them.

 A small wrinkle appeared between the girl’s eyebrows, a glint of determination sparkling in those large orbs that had Jongin weak at the knees.

 “Sounds good,” Kyungsoo affirmed, and Jongin felt a flickering jolt of hope that she was just as invested in this as he was. It would make things so much easier, after all.

 

 Jongin learned two things about Kyungsoo the afternoon they spent together dancing.

 One; Kyungsoo was very hard-working, putting her everything into learning her moves.

 In the beginning, Jongin almost found it disconcerting how Kyungsoo would more or less  _ stare _ at him, eyes following every little thing he did, but he started to ignore it after a while, and it did pay off. It did not take that long before Kyungsoo started to get the hang on the basic moves. Unfortunately, she had a bit of a hard time dancing properly in her jeans, so they decided they would start the dancing more properly the next practice.

 And two; Kyungsoo had… A temper.

 It was not bad, not like she struck out if something did go wrong, but Jongin caught her pursing her lips or hissing under her breath more times than once when she messed something up. And from how she almost ripped her hoodie off at one point, muttering about being too warm (and making Jongin gulp and quickly avert his eyes as he caught sight of soft, pale skin), Jongin quickly gathered that she was rather easily agitated, and did not like when things did not go her way.

 “I’m surprised by how easily you learn the moves, especially since you said that you didn’t really have faith in your dancing, but I still think we should practice twice a week,” Jongin said as they deemed the practice done for the day. He had quickly rushed over to the vending machine and gotten Kyungsoo a bottle of water, which she was now thankfully gulping down. “I’m not used to teaching people without any dance training, sorry… And I’d recommend some light exercise, maybe running, to help with endurance and stamina, but I think we’ll be able to pull it off, actually.”

 Finally removing the bottle from her lips, Kyungsoo huffed in a few breaths as she wiped her forehead with the back of her hand, and Jongin pretended not to notice how some strands of hair was sticking to her forehead.

 “You’re probably right about the exercise, especially if we’re going to sing as well,” Kyungsoo said, a little bit breathless, but a small smile gracing her face nonetheless. “I mean, we didn’t even go hard, yet I’m worn out…”

 And really, it was not Jongin’s fault. It was just that his brain thought it was fun to sometimes intentionally misinterpret things. And he totally blamed his brother and his cousin for this, as they had been the ones to condition him into thinking like that - he refused to believe anything else, like him just being naturally inclined to it.

 Of course, Jongin’s brain decided to put a whole other meaning behind Kyungsoo’s words, and he stiffened, face suddenly set ablaze as he tried to  _ not _ think too deeply into it. It seemed as if Kyungsoo realized how her words could be interpreted as well, since her eyes almost doubled in size suddenly, mouth dropping open in a silent, horrified gasp and face blooming with red.

 “I-I, um, that was  _ so not what I meant _ , I am so sorry!” Kyungsoo rambled in a quiet voice, her free hand coming up to slap over her mouth. And even in his mortification, Jongin could not help but internally wince over how  _ cute _ she was.

 “No, it’s fine, I’m sorry, there wasn’t really anything, uh, dirty about your words,” Jongin mumbled, gaze falling to the floor as he tried to get his heart back under control. “I just- I live with Jongdae and Baekhyun?”

 A choked and almost hysteric giggle echoed around the room, and Jongin glanced up to see Kyungsoo clamping her hand even harder over her mouth, eyes squeezed close and shoulders shaking.

 “I understand what you mean,” Kyungsoo said when she finally calmed down enough to be able to somewhat speak - and breathe - again. “But, yeah, more practice? Twice a week? I think that sounds sensible. We should start learning the lyrics as well, and I need to help you with proper techniques and stuff. You should ask Jongdae for help when home, too, he knows just as much as I do.”

 Jongin nodded his head, chewing on his lower lip. “We need to find a second day that works for the both of us, learn lyrics, and start running, then breathing exercises… You should probably try to dance at home as well, so you don’t fall too much out of practice in between practices.”

 Kyungsoo held up two fingers to her forehead, giving a mock salute with the cutest ‘stern’ expression Jongin had ever seen, and he was pretty sure by now that everything Kyungsoo ever did would always be the cutest thing to him.

 “Yes, sir! Start reading through the lyrics tonight, and we can get in touch about practice days later?” Kyungsoo said, switching over to a gentle but apologetic smile. “I should probably head on home, my brother has probably started cooking already…”

 “You live with your brother?” Jongin had not meant for the question to slip out, but it did, and he could not really take it back, even though he felt a bit like he was invading Kyungsoo’s privacy. “I’m sorry, you don’t have to answer that if you don’t want to…”

 The gentle smile grew in strength, into the lovely heart-shape that plagued Jongin’s mind all day, every day, as Kyungsoo literally beamed up at him.

 “Don’t worry about it. Yes, I live with my brother, with him and my nephew. They live close by here, and offered me a place to stay so I didn’t have to live in the dorms,” Kyungsoo explained, shrugging a little. “In exchange for helping with chores and babysitting my nephew, I get to stay in my own room, get home cooked food, and don’t have to share stuff with others. It wasn’t a tough choice, really… What about you? You live with Jongdae?”

 “Yeah, with Jongdae, Baekhyun and Chanyeol, actually. And my older brother, Junmyeon,” Jongin finished, glancing away from Kyungsoo, his older brother’s name a bit bitter on his tongue. “It’s pretty loud a lot of the time, but it’s nice, still.”

 “Hm, I can imagine,” Kyungsoo hummed, gaze locked someway far away when Jongin looked back at her. “They seem like great people, though. They’ve helped me a lot since I transferred here, and without them I would probably struggle a lot…”

 Even though Jongin could not help but feel a certain kind of sting in his heart at the words, he could neither bring himself to explain just why they had been so nice to Kyungsoo. After all, they had approached her because they were interested in who Jongin’s soulmate was, and after that realized that Kyungsoo as a person was also very interesting. It made Jongin feel bad, yet… He could not make himself explain, not now, not  _ yet _ .

 “I’m glad, but if they get too rowdy, let me know and I’ll talk to them,” Jongin said instead, making Kyungsoo snort.

 “I doubt  _ anything _ can stop them from being rowdy, but thank you, I appreciate the gesture,” she said, chuckling under her breath and shaking her head. “I’ve started to figure out how to deal with them now, so it’s not too bad. And if all else fail, my best friend knows wushu, so.”

 “Watch out for Baekhyun, he knows hapkido,” Jongin warned as he followed Kyungsoo over to where their bags were, watching her pick her stuff up, ignoring how empty it now looked next to his own bag. “You’ll probably be able to surprise attack him once, but then he’ll be on his guard.”

 “Ah, I see, I’ll keep that in mind,” Kyungsoo said, laughing as they moved towards the doors. Stopping next to them, she began to fiddle with hoodie in her hands, and all Jongin wanted to do was reach out and take a hold of her hands, but he stopped himself. “Uh, yeah, so I guess talk to you later?”

 “Yeah,” Jongin said, nodding as he tried to not seem to excited over it. Really, it had all gone so well so far, just a little more, and then he could freak out on his own. “I’ll text you later.”

 “Good, good… Don’t forget to start learning the lyrics!” Kyungsoo said, waving her hoodie-wrapped hands at Jongin, before opening one of the doors. “Bye, Jongin-ah.”

 “I won’t,” Jongin promised with a smile. “Bye, Kyungsoo-yah. Be careful on your way home.”

 With one last smile, Kyungsoo was out the door and down the corridor, the tension in Jongin’s chest fading as Kyungsoo walked further and further away. He wanted to reach out, run after her, stop her, but he knew he had to let her go. He hoped there would soon be a time when he did not have to let her go, but for now, he had to.

 As the door slipped closed, Jongin turned around and closed his eyes, deeply inhaling for the first time since  _ yesterday _ , thinking he could finally breathe properly. It was a mistake, though, he realized as his nose was assaulted by the sweet scent of Kyungsoo, interlaced with his own and enhanced by the workout. With every single cell vibrating with energy, Jongin had to ball his hands into fists, jaw clenched, to keep himself from literally tearing his own skin and rush after Kyungsoo. The wolf inside of him wanted to force the girl to comply to their fate by all means necessary, but the human refused.

 No matter what others said, they were not monsters. They could control themselves and function properly in today’s society, and Jongin was determined to keep proving everyone wrong. And he wanted Kyungsoo to be his because of her own real feelings, not because of force.

 After all, Jongin had a near-unique chance to make sure that his soulmate actually stayed with him because of real feelings. Wolf soulmates were perfect for each other, and after they got to know each other, most of them fell deeply in love, but they were greatly helped by hormones. The same did not apply to human soulmates, at least not as far as Jongin knew, and he was going to see this as an opportunity instead of a tragedy.

 Jongin’s resolution to make Kyungsoo fall in love with the human inside of him increased and cemented into place, and he would be unshakable in this. And if he could not do it, then it was better for him to let her go to be with someone else, someone better. Even though Jongin highly doubted that person existed, he would not encroach on Kyungsoo’s free will.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TERRIBLY SORRY IT'S TAKEN SO LONG TO UPDATE! Things have calmed down, but the inspiration... Has been lacking... Unfortunately... But, uh, yeah, here it is? Semi-realistic dance stuff is all thanks to my girl Minty-Pixie, go check her stuff out, it's amazing! Like really amazing, on really good level, y'all love it, I promise!


	6. Chapter VI

 “I think I soon have to euthanize you, sweetheart.”

 Kyungsoo looked up at Tao in confusion, as they were sitting in the cafeteria eating. Jongin had walked by a little bit earlier, greeting them with a soft smile, and Kyungsoo was still trying to get her heart back under control.

 “You’re all hearty-eyed and shit, and I know you hate the girly stereotypes,” Tao clarified, and Kyungsoo gave an ‘oh’ at the explanation. Made sense. “And I feel like I should be the best friend that I already am, and kill you off before you go full ew.”

 “Wow, how kind of you,” Kyungsoo deadpanned, but there was only a sliver of sarcasm to her words. “My ghost will haunt you out of gratefulness.”

 “It better,” Tao muttered as he took another bite of his food. “But really, how are things going with Mr. Sexbomb?”

 Kyungsoo proceeded to choke on her food, making the people sitting at tables nearby turn and look at her. Why did Tao always take her off guard like this? Should she not have developed some kind of protection to it now? It really was not fair!

 “There you go, there you go, deep breaths,” Tao chirped, and Kyungsoo really felt like punching him. He would see it coming, though, and it would not be worth it. Kyungsoo knew that. “And back to answering my question.”

 “You’re really trying to kill me, aren’t you? It’s going fine, I think. We haven’t really met since last night, but we texted some afterwards.”

 With an excited grin on his face, Tao leaned closer, his chin on his clutched hands.

 “You’re texting each other? Why haven’t I heard about this development? What are you texting about?” he asked, and Kyungsoo sighed as she took her tray and got up from the table.

 Tao quickly followed her, but she knew he would, and that was kind of the point. She needed to get him away from the cafeteria, away from the crowd, since he was kind of a drama queen and reacted dramatically to things.

 “We’re not casually texting,” Kyungsoo began as they started walking down the hallway, Tao slinging an arm over her shoulders. “It’s about the performance, we talked about what days we can practice on, and set up a schedule for things. Oh, shit, right, do you wanna help me get back into training? Like, ease me into it instead of throwing me into the deep edge immediately?”

 “But where’s the fun in taking it easy?” Tao whined, earning himself a soft elbow to the ribs.

 “You’ll end up injuring me so bad I won’t be able to perform, and miss my opportunity with him,” Kyungsoo hissed, a large group of people walking past them.

 Tao was quiet for a while, before he slowly began to nod. “That… Might be right, yes. You’re right. Goddammit. But I’m really happy that you’ve started to acknowledge your feelings, Soo!”

 Kyungsoo came to a stop as her mind blanched completely.

 “Acknowledge my… Feelings?” she carefully said. “What in all of the world are you talking about?”

 “You’ll miss your opportunity with him? Your words not mine?” Tao reminded Kyungsoo, and she suddenly felt like face-palming.

 Well, shit.

 “That’s not acknowledging any feelings, there aren’t any feelings to acknowledge,” Kyungsoo quickly said, trying to backpedal. “I just see this as a great opportunity to show another side of me, and- Stop laughing, Huang Zitao, or I swear I’ll break up with you.”

 “You would never, you love me!” Tao cackled, and Kyungsoo could only sigh, because that was the truth, and they both knew it.

 

 Kyungsoo did not think she would be spending a Saturday at school this early into the semester. Yet, here she was, walking through the eerily empty corridors and shivering over how haunting they seemed when they were not filled with the sound of students going back and forth.

 Who would ever have thought that having so many people around you could be so comforting? Kyungsoo definitely had not.

 Climbing the stairs to her destination, Kyungsoo felt her heart turn lighter and lighter, blaming it on soon being in a room with another person - not on the person himself. Oh, no, why would she feel near ecstatic over a person she had met like twice before? Yeah, no, it was just her nerves acting up… Nothing else…

 Finally arriving at the dance studio, Kyungsoo turned the handle and walked inside, freezing in place as she realized that there were  _ two _ people inside of it, one of which she did not know.

 There was Jongin, of course, sitting with his legs crossed, leaned back onto his hands and looking as perfect as ever, muscles tense beneath- No. Kyungsoo would not go there.

 And next to Jongin sat a girl, a rather cute girl, playing with her nails. Even if there was quite some space between them, Kyungsoo still felt the irrational need to squeeze herself down between them, securing her territory.

 Wow, that was a pretty weird feeling. What even?

 They had obviously been talking, but as Kyungsoo stepped inside, they stopped and turned towards her. Neither made a move for a heartbeat or so, before Jongin quickly got up on his feet, and Kyungsoo really could not believe that anybody could move as graciously as Jongin could, because it was truly insane. So fluid, yet so sharp.

 “Kyungsoo-yah, hey, you’re here!” Jongin exclaimed, a cute smile on his lips that had Kyungsoo think of puppies.

 “Um, of course I am, we agreed on this time,” Kyungsoo said as she finally stepped inside, trying to not show too much displeasure in her voice. Really, why was she feeling so upset over the girl? If anything, she should feel thankful, not having to spend the day completely alone with Jongin and her rampant hormones!

 “Right, right,” Jongin mumbled, scratching the back of his neck in that was that Kyungsoo recognized as nervousness. “Oh, yeah, this is Seulgi, by the way. Classmate, and she agreed to help us with our performance. I thought it might be easier for you to learn the movies with the help of another girl?”

 Was Jongin… Asking for her opinion on dancing…? But Kyungsoo did not know anything about dancing? Was he making sure she would not feel uncomfortable? How… Adorably sweet of him. Kyungsoo could feel herself warming up even more to Jongin, without her permission.

 The girl - Seulgi - had gotten up from the floor and walked over, still keeping some distance away from Jongin, which Kyungsoo was still strangely thankful for. Giving a small smile, Seulgi bowed, and Kyungsoo quickly mimicked the gesture.

 “Nice to meet you,” Seulgi said, and all Kyungsoo could think of was ‘cute’. “I hope I’ll be able to help!”

 “Nice to meet you, too, and I’m sure you can,” Kyungsoo answered, light amusement in her voice. “I mean, it can only go upwards from here, right?”

 Seulgi’s smile broadened, and Kyungsoo was yet again reminded of puppies. What the actual what? “I like the way you think, Kyungsoo-yah. We’ll be sure to make it work.”

 

 And work, Kyungsoo did. She was determined to learn the choreo, and put as much energy as possible into it to learn it quickly, but her determination was easily matched by Seulgi’s seriousness.

 Jongin was put on music duty, playing and replaying when ordered to do so, and sometimes without even being prompted. He was observing the two of them as they practiced, but not in a creepy way, but a way that had Kyungsoo feel like she had two teachers teaching her. Every now and then, Jongin would add something, give a suggestion, and even though Kyungsoo did not always understand what the heck he was talking about, Seulgi would nod and then help Kyungsoo with whatever was the problem. It was probably a good thing that there was two of them there, as both could keep an eye on what she was doing and together help her.

 Kyungsoo should probably feel blessed over it, and in some way, she did, but… She was also lowkey weeping on the inside, as she had yet to get back to training and building her stamina and muscles again. She would probably be sore for a few weeks to come, but still. She would have felt much better had she known that she could blame the exhaustion on something else than her failing physic. Nevermind that she would still be exhausted from her training, but whatever! Kyungsoo did not do logic at the moment!

 “Should we take a break?” Jongin asked just as Kyungsoo was absolutely convinced that she was seconds away from collapsing to the floor and never getting up again. Like ever.

 “I mean, I’m good, but sure,” Kyungsoo wheezed out, before actually collapsing. It hurt her butt a little, but she really did not care at the moment, leaning her elbows on her knees and closing her eyes as she let her head hang down.

 She heard two chuckles in the room, before a door opened and closed. Giving a deep sigh, Kyungsoo sunk even deeper into exhaustion, internally groaning. Why had she agreed to this?

 “Here,” came Jongin’s gentle voice next to her, and Kyungsoo jerked and looked up to find him crouching down next to her, a bottle of water in his hand that he was offering to Kyungsoo.

 When had he even gotten back? Kyungsoo had not heard him enter the dance studio again? Or had she partially fallen asleep? The latter seemed quite reasonable, so Kyungsoo gave an internal shrug and accepted the water with a thankful smile.

 Jongin sat down close to Kyungsoo, and Seulgi shuffled closer as well, until they were forming a kind of circle together. It was rather cosy, Kyungsoo thought, in some weird way. Wow, was she nearing her period? Because her feelings was certainly all over the place, acting up strangely, and that was the only explanation she had for it.

 It was strange, though, how it seemed as if Jongin was the catalysator to it all… After all, ever since Kyungsoo had first seen him, she had felt… Something. But maybe it was just a coincidence…

 “Kyungsoo? Are you okay?”

 Suddenly, Jongin came into focus in front of Kyungsoo, and she twitched and gave a gasp as she was slammed back down into reality.

 “Ah, huh, what?” Kyungsoo quickly said, cheeks starting to heat up. “Yeah, yeah, I’m fine, I just zoned out a little, sorry…”

 “No, it’s okay, you don’t have to apologize,” Jongin said, a smile on his lips. “You must be tired, I keep forgetting you’re not used to this. You’ll probably be sore tomorrow, as well.”

 “I think I’m already sore…,” Kyungsoo tiredly laughed, trying to unscrew the cap of her bottle. “Yepp, no strength, I’ll be dead by tomorrow morning.”

 Jongin chuckled as he reached out and took the bottle from Kyungsoo and quickly unscrewed the cap.

 “I hope not, then I’d have to find a new partner for this performance,” Jongin joked, and Kyungsoo smiled and bashfully looked down as she got the bottle back.

 Somebody - Seulgi - cleared their throat, and Kyungsoo was suddenly reminded that she and Jongin were not the only people in the room, and they had been lowkey flirting… Oh, dear.

 Glancing up quickly, Kyungsoo was pretty sure that she saw a light blush across Jongin’s cheekbones, and really, the cuteness had Kyungsoo internally squealing.

 “So, Jongin told me that you’ll be singing as well,” Selugi spoke up, giving a small smile that Kyungsoo could not decide if it was genuine or slightly mocking. Maybe a mix of both? “I’ve heard Jongin sing, and I’d recommend finding yourself a new partner if you survive after tomorrow.”

 Kyungsoo could not stop the laughter from bubbling up her throat, Jongin making a strange kind of strangled sound.

 “ _ Seulgi! _ ” Jongin hissed out, baring his teeth in a way that was probably meant to appear scary, but Kyungsoo only found adorable. Wow, soft much?

 “Hey, just looking out for her, she deserves the warning!” Seulgi argued, amusement in her voice.

 “Like you sing any better,” Jongin protested, having moved on to pouting by now.

 “I actually do,” Seulgi smirked, and by now, Kyungsoo was feeling rather agitated.

 “If you want to, I can compare you and decide,” Kyungsoo interrupted the bickering dancers, voice a tinge harder than she wanted, a bit too obvious. Why was she feeling so  _ territorial _ over Jongin? They had met like three times by now, and barely knew each other.

 Seulgi turned to Kyungsoo with a large smile on her lips, clapping her hands excitedly.

 “Yes, that sounds awesome! Then you can evaluate if you want a partner change! I can totally do the guy part, I’m a better pick!” Seulgi beamed, completely ignoring the glare Jongin sent her, and suddenly Kyungsoo found it rather entertaining instead of annoying.

 “Okay, should we do ‘Now’? Then I can evaluate who of you sound the best to perform with,” Kyungsoo suggested, lightly teasing, and Seulgi giggled.

 “Great! This is going to be so fun!”

 “I feel conspired against,” Jongin muttered, but likewise got up and fetched his phone that had been used for playing the song already.

 “We need lyrics!” Seulgi sing-sang as she scrambled to her feet and fetched her own phone, before coming back and sitting down in the circle just as Jongin did the same, reconnecting it. “Do you want to start us off, Kyungsoo-yah?”

 Kyungsoo nodded as she watched the two dancers fiddle with their phones. “Sure thing, the verse starts with my part anyway.”

 When everything was ready, they looked at each other, nervousness and excitement in the air.

 “So… Who’s going first?” Jongin asked, breaking the silence.

 “I can sacrifice myself,” Seulgi said, placing a hand over her heart and giving a rather impressive martyr expression that had Kyungsoo smiling. “Start the music, pup!”

 Jongin gave a growl that travelled down Kyungsoo’s spine, but did as told. As the notes began to fill the air, Kyungsoo sat up properly and exhaled, hands on her knees as she waited for her cue. Glancing over at Jongin, she saw him subtly dance along to the song, and it seemed like an unconscious gesture, as if the muscle memory was so strong that he  _ had _ to dance along.

 Inhaling, Kyungsoo focused, closed her eyes, and began to sing. She was nervous as hell, even more nervous than she was when standing on a stage singing for so many more, as one particular gaze seemed to burn through her now. But she was trained for this, a professional, and she would show him just how good she was.

 As the song continued into Seulgi’s part, Kyungsoo slowly opened her eyes, barely daring to look up at Jongin. He was staring at her, his gaze dark, quickly looking down at his lap as she caught him looking; but it was already too late, Kyungsoo had seen it, the look in his eyes, and her heart was beating so fast and hard that she could barely breathe. Looking away from the handsome man, Kyungsoo tried to concentrate on Seulgi’s singing - but it was hard.

 It was hard when she was sitting so close to Jongin that she could almost feel his body heat,  _ smell _ him, see every little curve and edge of his face. It was so enticing, and Kyungsoo got lost as she tried to stay on the path.

 Seulgi, right, focus. With a Herculean effort, Kyungsoo forced her attention away from Jongin, and to Seulgi. She had a nice singing voice, able to raise the pitch to match her voice much better, whilst still fitting the song. Kyungsoo was actually rather impressed, giving a small applaud as the chorus began, and Jongin turned the music off.

 Seulgi gave a small bow, before giggling, some color staining her cheeks, and Kyungsoo felt like patting the girl’s head and letting her know she did a good job. That might be a bit weird, though, so Kyungsoo settled on the latter part.

 “That was much better than I expected,” Kyungsoo said, almost cooing at the way Seulgi’s smile widened. “I’m impressed!”

 Thanking Kyungsoo, Seulgi then turned to poke her tongue out at Jongin, who was looking a bit bummed out, a pout on his face. Really, Kyungsoo had never expected Jongin to be so adorable as he was showing at the moment, a whole other side to him obviously hidden behind the aloof and frankly untouchable mask he normally wore.

 “If you don’t want to, it’s okay,” Kyungsoo found herself softly saying, not liking the thought of Jongin feeling uncomfortable. “You don’t have to, it’s your choice.”

 Jongin shook his head and took Seulgi’s phone from her, pushing his own over towards her.

 “No, I’m fine, I’ll have to do this sooner or later…,” Jongin mumbled, the corners of his lips curling up just the slightest in what was supposed to be a smile, but did not quite fully develop into one. “I’m ready.”

 Seulgi nodded, glancing up at Kyungsoo, before starting the music. Just as before, Kyungsoo sat up straight as she waited for her cue to start, but this time, she did not feel as nervous, neither did she close her eyes. She was curious, so intensely curious, about Jongin’s singing, and that overrode everything else.

 Jongin’s gaze was glued to the screen of the phone in his hands as Kyungsoo began to sing, and he dragged a hand through his hair as they got closer to his part, sitting up a bit straighter.

 Then Kyungsoo’s part was over, and Jongin’s began. He closed his eyes and sang, and Kyungsoo felt her breath hitch.

 It was not perfect, no, but it was oddly beautiful, and he managed to hit the important notes. And most significant of it all - he managed to make a deep impression on her.

 Without even thinking about it, Kyungsoo picked the singing back up at the chorus, joining Jongin seamlessly. Jongin opened his eyes and looked over at Kyungsoo, and they stayed like that, intertwined sometimes and separated sometimes, but always connected through their gazes.

 Then the song ended, and Kyungsoo felt oddly empty, yet still unable to tear her gaze from Jongin’s.

 “Okay, I give up,” Selugi said, a soft smile on her lips, making Kyungsoo jump a little and turn towards the girl. “I admit defeat, you two sound much better together.”

 Kyungsoo hoped her cheeks were not as red as they felt, as she ducked her head at the compliment, a few butterflies tumbling through her belly.

 “You have my blessing for this collaboration!” Seulgi joked, and it defused the situation enough for Kyungsoo to give a small laugh, not feeling as awkward anymore.

 “Gee, thanks,” Jongin drawled, but there was humor in his voice as well.

 

 When evening came around and found Kyungsoo lying in her bed, so did the pain. Her limbs were exhausted, a dull pain aching through her, but surprisingly, Kyungsoo did not feel too bad about it. There was a silly grin on her face and a soft and light feeling in her chest, though she refused to look into where that feeling was coming from.

 She had had a really good day, even with all the hard work, and it was nice. It was nice to be making friends with people at a new place, and Kyungsoo felt encouraged by her growing social network. Being a new student at a school, especially in a grade where most already knew each other, was hard, but it was getting a lot easier.

 Knowing that she would have a long day ahead of her with Tao tomorrow, Kyungsoo did not let that ruin her good mood. She could deal with that tomorrow; tonight she would just revel in the good feelings, Jongin’s singing on repeat in her brain.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am finally back, like over a month later... It has been a mess... But now updates should come quicker... Sorry about the wait, hope this chapter made up for it~!


	7. Chapter VII

 Jongin could not sleep.

 He was still so wound up from the day, and was unable to fall asleep, or even relax. He kind of wanted to throw himself out of bed, run to Kyungsoo’s house, and cuddle up against her…

 Seulgi had been by the Kim house earlier, after the practice, to gossip with Jongdae, and even though Jongin was groaning his way through every ‘It was so cute!’, he was also very glad for the outsider perspective she gave.

 Like the fact that Kyungsoo had apparently been a bit territorial-like with Jongin, eyeing the distance between him and Seulgi, sternly interrupting their bickering in a jealous way… And all of the little looks and glances that Jongin had missed - though Seulgi had two more looks from Jongin for every look from Kyungsoo, and Jongin found that rather embarrassing.

 Rolling over onto his back, Jongin let out a deep breath, staring up at the ceiling above him. Stars faintly shone above him, one of the few childhood things still left in his room. They had felt like a safety so many years ago, and still felt like it. A piece of his old room, his old life.

 Mood plummeting rather quickly, Jongin stilled in his bed, breathing slow, as he drowned in old memories. Knowing he would for sure not get any sleep now, he slipped out of his bed, and out of the house, shifting to run on four legs through the woods.

 

 Returning home in the early hours, Jongin was surprised to see a light turned on in the living room. Peeking inside, he found Junmyeon sitting in one of the armchairs, turning an object over and over in his hands, seemingly completely focused on it. This fitted Jongin well, as he headed out of the living room and towards his bedroom.

 “Jongin.”

 Freezing, Jongin stood still, ears perked as he wondered if his name had been called, or if it was his mind fucking with him. Logically, he knew he had heard it, but a part of him was so doubtful of it still.

 “Come here.”

 No, he had not been imagining things. Shoulders pulled up in a tense position, Jongin slowly made his way back to the living room, careful to not make too much noise. Not that he was afraid, but because he really did not want to be there, and if he could get away quicker if he made himself as invisible as possible, then all the better.

 Junmyeon was still watching the object in his hands when Jongin came into the living room, stopping half a meter inside of the door. His face was completely blank, but it had been years since Jongin had hoped for anything else.

 Blank was better than mad.

 “I heard that you’ve met your soulmate,” Junmyeon slowly began, voice barely above a whisper, and Jongin could not discern if Junmyeon was happy or angry over this. Or felt anything about it all. “A human girl.”

 For a moment, Jongin wondered how Junmyeon had found out. It was not as if Junmyeon showed any interest in his younger brothers or cousin - but after all, they were all living in the same house, even though it sometimes did not feel like it.

 “Yes,” Jongin simply answered.

 The object in Junmyeon’s hands stopped for a moment, before he resumed spinning it around. Even Jongin’s eyes had a hard time discerning what it was, that was how quickly Junmyeon was spinning it, but he could tell that it was some sort of an old ball.

 “Does she know?” Junmyeon asked, glancing up at Jongin for the barest of moments.

 “No.”

 “Why not?”

 “I… I don’t want to rush into anything. She’s not a shapeshifter, she doesn’t feel the pull, at least not in the same way as me. And I don’t want to scare her away…”

 The corners of Junmyeon’s lips turned up just the barest, but still enough to form somewhat of a smile, and Jongin could not help but wonder if it was genuine or mocking.

 “That’s very… Nice of you. You should make sure you really want to drag her into this world before you tell her. Once she’s in the darkness, there are many monsters that will want a bite of her…”

 With that, Junmyeon got up, and walked past Jongin into the kitchen.

 Jongin stood rooted to the floor for long minutes, before he finally managed to peel his feet away and shuffle up the stairs.

_ “Never forget, Jonginnie. There are many monsters in the dark, so you must always be watchful, and always stick close to your brothers. Together, you can fight them all.” _

 Oh, how disappointed their mother would be if she could see their shattered state right now…

 

 The sun was standing high in the sky when Jongin finally awoke again. He had managed to tire himself out properly the night before, and with the added weight of memories, he had fallen into a deep slumber.

_ Something _ had woken him up, though, and it took him some time to figure out  _ what _ it was.

 Then his phone vibrated once on his bedside table again, and Jongin cracked an eye open to look at it, confused as to who it could be. Reaching out and fumbling around, he managed to get ahold of it, bringing it close to his eyes, and proceeding to almost fall out of his bed in shock.

  
  


**Kyungsoo-noona:**

_ Hope you’re not slacking off on your vocal practice, Jonginnie~ _

_ Since I’m currently dying from dance practice, you should suffer as well~! _

 

 Jongin was so very confused. Kyungsoo had texted him? Sounding so happy and cheerful? Whilst also threatening him? What in the world?

 

**Me:**

_ I’m very sorry about your suffering? _

_ Unfortunately it’s a side-effect of working out? _

_ And no, I haven’t started yet, just woke up _

  
  


 Was that too much information? It probably was… But there was no turning back now! The message was already sent, and Jongin cringed as he saw the little thingie turn green as Kyungsoo read the messages.

  
  


**Kyungsoo-noona:**

_ In bed? This late? Did you go out last night? _

 

**Me:**

_ Ah, no, couldn’t sleep until late _

_ I don’t go out much, alcohol isn’t really good for you… _

 

**Kyungsoo-noona:**

_ Right… Very true. _

_ You must be very strict to keep your body in such good shape _

_ So! I was wondering if you’d started your vocal training yet! _

_ You said you haven’t, but I recommend doing it soon! _

_ Also, remember to train whilst jogging, helps a lot! _

_ Gtg, bye~! _

  
  


 Jongin laid staring at his screen for a good ten minutes. What even. Kyungsoo had… Complimented his body… And then changed the subject? Jongin did not know if he wanted to blush, grin, or frown. Maybe a combination of all three? Yeah, that seemed like a good combination…

 “Yo, Sleeping Beauty!” came Jongdae’s cheerful voice from outside of Jongin’s door. “Hope you’re not naked!”

 Before Jongin would even have had the chance to actually cover his nakedness had he been naked - even with his reflexes - Jongdae barged inside. He was grinning widely, but as he took in Jongin lying in his bed, phone over his face, he tilted his head.

 “Are you watching porn?” he asked, and Jongin almost dropped the phone on his face.

 “What, no!” Jongin spluttered, sitting up and dragging a hand through his hair. “I was just… Talking to Kyungsoo.”

 Jongdae raised an eyebrow at that, walking into Jongin’s room, a smirk blooming on his face.

 “Oh, is that so? And what did the two lovebirds talk about?”

 Jongin felt the heat in his cheeks magnify, but he tried to will it away.

 “We were talking about exercise. Related to our dancing routine, not whatever your perverted mind can come up with.”

 Sitting down in Jongin’s bed and folding his legs in front of him, Jongdae snorted. “You’re the one with the perverted mind, I didn’t even say anything. Anyway, why did that have you blushing like a teenage girl?”

 “That’s a very rude stereotype,” Jongin reprimanded Jongdae, before sighing and slumping a little. “She… I think she said I have a nice body… And then she fled…”

 Emotions rapidly flitted across Jongdae’s face - ranging from ‘what’, ‘no way’, ‘are you serious?’ to ‘holy shit!’ and ‘this is so good!’, and Jongin was pretty sure he could hear every one of those expressions in his head with Jongdae’s voice. Twin telepathy? Or just too used to him? Probably the latter.

 “Let me see, let me see!” Jongdae exclaimed, clapping his hands like an excited child on Christmas, and it was with much apprehension that Jongin held out his phone, still open on his and Kyungsoo’s conversation.

 Jongdae quickly read through the conversation, before reading it through three more times, a large grin spreading on his lips.

 “She totally did… She called you hot, and then she tried to cover it up, before just leaving…,” Jongdae whispered, and Jongin was pretty happy he was not screaming it out. “Dude, she totally called you hot… What are you going to say back?”

 Jongin’s eyes almost popped out of his head as he choked on air, not having thought about that at all.

 “Yes, you have to write something back,” Jongdae sternly said, nailing Jongin’s thoughts perfectly. “You can’t just leave it at that, you’re leaving her hanging, maybe even worrying that she might have fucked up, wondering if you’re ghosting her. Don’t be that guy.”

 “Then what am I supposed to answer?” Jongin asked, feeling slightly panicked, because he  _ really _ did not want to be  _ that _ guy.

 Jongdae shrugged as he handed the phone back to Jongin, patting him on the shoulder.

 “I’m sure you’ll come up with something, bro. Just… Be yourself?”

 Jongin gave a whine that Jongdae completely disregarded as he got up from the bed, giving a mock salute and a wink, before leaving Jongin alone in his despair.

 “ _ Shit! _ ”

 

 Jongin was nervous. Jongin was oh so very nervous. So incredibly nervous that he felt like throwing up.

 He was currently waiting for Kyungsoo to see and respond to his latest text. Emboldened by Kyungsoo’s ‘slip-up’ or whatever about his body, Jongin had decided to throw caution a little to the wind, and ask Kyungsoo out.

 Not on a date, of course.

 For a jogging session.

 And a vocal session as well.

 It was really just a disguise to hang out more with Kyungsoo - though a part of it was because Jongin  _ wanted _ to work on his vocals. There were two parts to their collaboration, and the perfectionist in Jongin wanted to make sure they were both as good as they could possibly be. And since vocals was Kyungsoo’s area of expertise, it made sense to practice on it with her.

 But Jongin also kind of just wanted to see Kyungsoo.

 When Jongin’s phone vibrated next to him, he almost tumbled off of his bed, a strangled scream falling from his mouth. Heart in his throat, Jongin fumbled around for his phone, with shaky fingers unlocking it. And as soon as the chat loaded and his eyes had scanned the message, he buried his face into his cover, a silly grin on his lips.

  
  


**Kyungsoo-noona:**

_ I don’t mind that at all _

_ After all, it’s pretty logical thinking, and it’ll benefit the both of us _

_ When do you want to go? Today? _

_ Wait, on second thought, maybe not today… _

_ Please don’t say it’ll help my aching muscles, because I don’t believe that _

  
  


 Jongin snickered giddily over Kyungsoo’s rambling, finding it rather adorable. He wished he would some day see her ramble in front of him, but he could easily wait for that to happen.

  
  


**Me:**

_ It really does help your muscles, though, I’m not lying _

_ Stretching and then some light jogging would probably be very good for you! _

_ But I won’t force you if you don’t want to, of course _

  
  


 It took a bit longer for the reply to come, but considering what the reply was, Jongin did not mind that in the least.

 Instead, Jongin was rolling around in his bed, giggling to himself and flailing, his heart almost aching with happiness.

  
  


**Kyungsoo-noona:**

_ Sure, okay _

_ Let's go today _

_ But if I collapse, you'll have to carry me! _

  
  


 Jongin would have no problems whatsoever with carrying Kyungsoo, no matter how far it was needed. He would carry her to the end of the world if she asked him.

 No matter what Kyungsoo asked him to do, Jongin would do it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, shit, would you look at that! An update! It's been 84 years (more like almost exactly five months, wow, I am so sorry) and a lot has happened since then, but I am back with an update and a semi-promise of a new chapter soon again. I have the beginning for chapter 8 and a vague plot, so it's something? Hopefully it won't be another five months, ahahaha... Then we'd actually be in a new year, and a plan to have at least a few more chapters out in 2018.  
> Anyhow, have y'aLL SEEN THE JAPANESE KAISOO CONTENT?! I AM SO WELL-FED, YUM, AMAZING, WE LOVE!


	8. Chapter VIII

 It had actually been Tao’s idea, to go with Jongin. Kyungsoo had been with him as Jongin had sent  _ The Text _ , and Tao had quickly jumped at the opportunity, telling Kyungsoo that Jongin was right and that the stretching plus jogging would help. If nothing else, it would be easier on Kyungsoo than what Tao had in mind, even though the whole doing it with Jongin thing would probably help it become more of a proper workout, what with the stuttering heart and difficulty to breathe stuff.

 “I don't feel that!” Kyungsoo had protested, even though her flaming cheeks were negating her protest pretty well.

 “Sure, sweetie,” Tao had drawled, cackling as he had told Kyungsoo to set up the date - the date that was not a date.

 And so, Kyungsoo found herself decked out in her training outfit, walking towards the park close to the university where a running trail was offered for students and willing people to use. Tao had followed her to the university, before waving her off and telling her that ‘doing it in the forest is not as great as it sounds’, to which Kyungsoo had screamed a panicked goodbye at him before speeding up. That was not something she needed Jongin, or anyone else for that matter, to hear.

 She had been wondering if she was going to have to wait for long before Jongin showed up, seeing as he had been in bed when they were talking, but as soon as Kyungsoo could see the fence running around the little pond where they had decided to meet up, she knew she did not have to worry. Jongin was already there, somehow having beaten her even though she was sure she would be first.

 Feeling that slight pull at her core, Kyungsoo exhaled, and let it do what it wanted - pull her towards Jongin. Just maybe not as close as it wanted her to go. No, public groping was not something she thought would go over well.

 Jongin was dressed in a t-shirt and shorts, showing off toned calves and arms, tan skin stretched taut over muscles and tendons and veins. How anyone was allowed to look that good in workout gear, Kyungsoo did not know, but she knew that Jongin looked good in everything, and it was a lost cause to get upset over it. The guy had clearly been blessed, and well, Kyungsoo could just as well accept it and appreciate it.

 Much like she had earlier that day, when she had accidentally let it slip that she found Jongin’s body very nice. She still wanted to groan out loud in embarrassment at that, but she held it in as Jongin glanced up, eyes zeroing in on her, before his face broke out into a smile.

 Schooling her own expression into a smile as well - rather easily since Jongin just had that effect on her - Kyungsoo held up a hand and gave a small wave. It had her grimacing, though, the movement pulling on her poor sore muscles.

 “Are you hurting a lot?” was the first thing Jongin asked, as his face fell a little in worry, and he met Kyungsoo halfway.

 “A little bit,” Kyungsoo confessed, shrugging a little. “I’ve had worse, though, during the time I used to work out with Tao, so it’s no worries.”

 Jongin worried his lower lip, hesitation clear in his eyes, before he slowly nodded.

 “Okay, but we’re going to stretch properly, and take it easy, and you have to let me know if you start feeling pain and not just uncomfortable. No need to injure you this early on, you still have a choreo to learn.”

 Kyungsoo chuckled as she nodded as well, motioning for Jongin to begin. “True, I’d rather not get injured at all, so I’ll let you know when I feel bad.”

 “Good,” Jongin said, flashing a quick smile, before he walked off of the sidewalk and onto the lawn, Kyungsoo following. “Let’s go then!”

 They spent the next half an hour or so properly stretching and warming up, Jongin making sure to take the time to get Kyungsoo completely loosened up, and Kyungsoo had to admit that she was feeling a bit better. But she knew that the ache would hit her later again, probably when she relaxed later that day, and that there was not much to do about it anyway but accept that it was coming. She was working out in a way she had never done before, really, and it had been some time since she had worked out at all, so her body was really not used to this. She just hoped that her body would get into everything easier than it had last time, because that had truly been hell.

 When Jongin deemed them ready, they set off in a chill tempo, barely even fast enough to be called jogging, more slow enough to be speedwalking, but Kyungsoo did not mind. Baby steps to get into it, and not go full out at once, that was how you won the race. Or whatever.

 “So, I’ve read through the lyrics a few times, but I don’t think I have them down well enough to not mess up,” Jongin began as they got deeper onto the trail, and it had Kyungsoo chuckling.

 “Don’t worry, you can still mess up even when you have them down as good as you possibly can,” Kyungsoo reassured Jongin, shaking her head. “It’s not rare for performers to forget their own lyrics in the middle of the performance, but hopefully we both won’t mess up, since we’re only doing one performance. And you started learning the lyrics, what, yesterday at earliest? I haven’t even memorized them perfectly yet, so you really don’t have to worry.”

 By the end of her reassurance, Kyungsoo was starting to feel a bit out of breath, but she knew it would get worse. It would get much worse, actually, and she was not particularly looking forwards to it, but what could you do? They had about a month and a half to perfect their performance, so sweat and pain would probably be a constant in Kyungsoo’s life for a while ahead now.

 “Doesn’t it kinda defeat the purpose of singing whilst working out if I don’t know the lyrics, though?” Jongin asked, not sounding the least out of breath, and Kyungsoo envied him. He obviously had an advantage in having the more physically straining major, but he would probably only be faring slightly better than her at the end of this.

 “Or maybe it’s more like this training session will serve two purposes,” Kyungsoo laughed. “Don’t worry, I’ll help you, and if I can’t help you, then I pray our phones still have coverage here so we can google.”

 That had Jongin laughing as well, and it was a really nice sound. Kyungsoo wanted to hear it more, a lot more.

 “We’re not that deep, this trail doesn’t even go into the forest, it just stays in the park,” Jongin said, nodding in a direction. “Over there is the real forest, and you still have okay phone coverage in there, so it’s no worries.”

 “What, you go hiking often?” Kyungsoo teased, but was surprised when Jongin actually nodded.

 “Actually, yeah, I kinda do. I like walking in the forest, it’s peaceful and solitary, just me and my thoughts,” Jongin said, his smile turning soft and gentle. “It helps a lot if I’m feeling upset or sad or whatever, and it’s nice to sometimes get away from the crazy zoo that is my home.”

 Kyungsoo turned contemplative at that, teasing grin slipping off of her face.

 “Okay, right, I can understand that…,” she slowly said, glancing over towards where she could just barely make out the trees grouping together more, forming the start of the woods. “To be honest, the forest have always scared me a little.”

 “Why?” Jongin asked, turning to Kyungsoo with a surprised expression that had Kyungsoo shrugging a little.

 “Well, I don’t know how long you’ve been living in this area, but when I was younger there were rumors about wolves running around here,” Kyungsoo said, noticing how Jongin’s surprised expression was exchanged with a frown as he looked away from her. “Some even said they killed people, though as far as I know nothing was confirmed, and I was absolutely forbidden to even go close to the forest whenever we were in town, and I guess that sorta stuck with me?”

 “Ah, yes, I know about those rumors,” Jongin said, giving a laugh that sounded slightly strained, and it had Kyungsoo confused. “And it’s probably pretty wise to not go into the forest on your own.”

 Wanting to lift the suddenly rather somber mood, Kyungsoo ran a bit closer to Jongin, looking up at him with a small smile.

 “Does that make you stupid then? Since you go walking in the forest on your own?” she asked, stunning Jongin into silence, before he gave a more relaxed laugh, shaking his head.

 “I’d say it makes me confident in my abilities to protect myself, but I guess it kinda makes me a bit stupid too,” Jongin admitted, grinning at Kyungsoo.

 And suddenly, images of Jongin, looking beaten up, flashed past Kyungsoo’s eyes. ‘ _ Confident in my abilities _ ,’ was it because Jongin had fought a lot of other people? Was that what had happened back then?

 “Kyungsoo? Are you okay?” Jongin’s voice brought Kyungsoo back to the present, and she quickly blinked her eyes before looking up at him.

 “Yeah, I’m fine,” Kyungsoo said, eyes focusing on the path ahead of them for a while as she sorted through her thoughts. “Hey, Jongin…”

 “Hm?” Jongin answered, but Kyungsoo had already lost her courage.

 Giving a small smile and shaking her head, Kyungsoo pushed all of those thoughts away. “Nothing, nevermind. Shall we get on with the lyrics? Before I get too out of breath to sing?”

 Jongin looked her over for a second, and Kyungsoo thought he would push her to say what she had wanted, but then he just smiled and nodded, moving on.

 “Maybe that’s a good idea, yeah.”

 

 Thankfully, as they were running and singing, and meeting others, they did not receive too many strange looks. Kyungsoo guessed this had something to do with the trail being on university grounds, and this specific university having a rather well-known music program, so most people would probably already be used to these kinds of things.

 It did not help tame Kyungsoo’s blush, though, which Jongin apparently found rather amusing.

 “You’re really going to blush every time someone runs past us as we sing, aren’t you?” Jongin chuckled at one point, probably not laughing out loud only because he was getting a bit winded by now as well.

 After all, he was doing the most singing at the moment, Kyungsoo mostly just jumping in when he messed up the lyrics, or to offer advice. Kyungsoo was suffering only through that anyway, so she was pretty happy she was not doing much more.

 “Probably,” Kyungsoo answered, trying to get down a deep breath. “I normally don’t do this, I stand on a stage and sing- whew, this is tiring… And I can only imagine what a mess I look like.”

 Looking over, Jongin offered Kyungsoo a rather soft, yet absolutely captivating smile, that had Kyungsoo’s knees weak. Well, weak _ er _ . Her breathing was probably not helped much by it either.

 “You don’t look like a mess, don’t worry,” Jongin said, and it had Kyungsoo give a short bark of laughter, because really?

 “I’m sweating and my face is probably a bit red,” Kyungsoo protested, honestly feeling a bit self-conscious about it.

 All of a sudden, Jongin was in front of Kyungsoo, making her almost run straight into him before she was able to stop, his hands hovering above her shoulders as if not sure if he could put them on her, or just there as a precaution for her not to fall. Surprised, Kyungsoo blinked up at Jongin, rather thankful for the reprieve from the jogging as she had started to get pretty tired.

 “You’re running, of course you’re sweating and looking a bit red,” Jongin said, chest rising and falling deeply, as if he was trying to get his breathing back under control. Kyungsoo should probably also do that, but she was too lost in the honest look in Jongin’s eyes to do so. “But that doesn’t mean you’re looking like a mess. Honestly, you’re way too beautiful to look like a mess. You’re just looking cute.”

 And suddenly, Kyungsoo could no longer breathe as her entire face felt like it was put on fire. Even as her brain shut down completely and refused to reboot, she did notice how Jongin’s eyes widened as his cheeks also turned red.

 “I-I mean…,” Jongin began, before he gave something halfway between a sigh and a groan, dragging a hand through his hair. “I can’t even take it back or play it off, because it’s true…”

 “Th-thank you,” Kyungsoo managed to stutter out, eyes going to the ground, yet still unable to keep a smile off of her lips. Her heart was beating faster than it had when they were running, like the giddiness bubbling inside of her veins was giving it a hardcore workout.

 Why did she feel so ridiculously happy over Jongin calling her cute? Kyungsoo normally hated to be called cute! She could never tell Tao this, or he would never let her live it down… But she probably would anyway, because that was just how friendship worked.

 “No worries,” Jongin mumbled, rubbing at his neck, looking so awkward that it helped Kyungsoo not feel as awkward. “So really, you don’t have to worry… About, you know, people thinking you look like a mess… Can we continue, before I make an even bigger fool out of myself?”

 Biting her lip, Kyungsoo nodded, because she really did not think that Jongin was making a fool out of himself, but she was a bit too shy to tell him that. That meant admitting to some things that Kyungsoo did not feel like she could admit to right now.

 So instead, they began to run once more, this time staying more or less quiet, and even though it was slightly awkward, it was not a bad kind of quiet.

 Every now and then, Kyungsoo would glance over at Jongin, and every now and then, she would catch him glance over as well, making them both give quiet and embarrassed laughs as they glanced away from each other.

 But every good thing must come to an end, and for Kyungsoo it came with aching lungs and aching legs. As they neared the started of the trail once more, Kyungsoo slowed down, Jongin taking only half a second to notice and slow down too.

 “Sorry, I just- yesterday is really taking its toll now,” Kyungsoo managed to get out without panting too much, and she thanked her lucky star for that, even though she knew she sounded rather breathless.

 “Don’t worry about it, I’m impressed you didn’t give in sooner,” Jongin said as he came to a stop, hand encircling Kyungsoo’s wrist so he could pull her to a stop as well.

 And it was as if electricity suddenly jolted through Kyungsoo, radiating out from where Jongin’s skin touched hers, and Kyungsoo really hoped her gasp was inconspicuous enough to be blamed on her being so out of shape. Because it really was too cheesy that their skin contact would warrant electricity, and Kyungsoo was not the main character of a romantic novel. This shit did not happen in real life.

 “Take a moment to breathe and calm down, and let’s walk over to the grass so we can stretch?” Jongin suggested, unfortunately retracting his hand, and Kyungsoo wished he had held on a bit longer. Like forever longer. But immediately after, Kyungsoo internally shook her head at that thought, because what the hell?

 “Sure,” Kyungsoo managed to get out amidst her internal chaos, forcing herself to take deep breaths before she started to walk again, Jongin keeping by her side. Kyungsoo knew that he was also a bit strained, she could see that he was not breathing like he normally would, but he still looked so unfairly unruffled.

 Though there were sweat beading across his forehead and down the sides of his face, running along his neck, and Kyungsoo wanted to get closer, wanted to taste…

 “Kyungsoo? Are you okay?”

 Blinking rather vigorously, Kyungsoo forced her unleashed thoughts back into the darkest pit she could find, heat washing over her face as she looked up at Jongin.

 “Huh, what? Oh, yeah, fine, sorry, just a bit tired,” Kyungsoo hurried to say, before looking away from Jongin.

 Had he seen where she had been looking? Had he made connections, even a connection that might be remotely close to what she had actually been thinking? Really, Kyungsoo’s period better come soon so she could get over that shit, because her out of control and running wild hormones were really starting to stress her out!

 “Okay,” was all Jongin said, but Kyungsoo did not find the courage to even glance over to see if he was believing her or not. His voice did not sound overly convinced, but he did not push it this time either, to which Kyungsoo was grateful.

 Jongin really seemed like a nice guy… Nice guys are good, everyone likes nice guys!

 Images of what seemed like as a not as nice Jongin once more flashed past in Kyungsoo’s mind, and the question hung from the tip of her tongue once again. She was so curious about what had happened, and honestly how he had seemed completely healed the next time she saw him.

 Did he have a twin? Well, she knew that he had, but she was also pretty sure it was not Jongdae she had seen that night. Did they have another twin, were they triplets? No, that seemed unlikely too, especially considering Kyungsoo was 99 percent sure it had been Jongin…

 After all, the pulling had been there; that had been what made her turn and look at him. She had no reason to look into that alley, but she had felt compelled to do so, almost forced, and had seen Jongin. She thinks, at least. It had to have been him.

 “Did I make you go to hard?”

 Once more, Jongin’s words brought Kyungsoo back down to Earth, and she looked up at him in confusion. Jongin gave a small sigh and a soft smile that honestly had Kyungsoo feel a bit bad, since she had obviously spaced out. Again.

 “You seem pretty tired or something, did I push you too hard with the running?” Jongin clarified, and Kyungsoo began to protest before he had even finished.

 “No, no! Not at all! You’ve been going easy on me, way easier than Tao would’ve, so I’m very thankful for that!” Kyungsoo answered, worrying her lower lip as she tried to make a decision. “I just, I don’t know, have a lot on my mind at the moment, and I’m sorry I’m making you suffer for it.”

 “Don’t worry about it,” Jongin said, still smiling so softly, and he really was so nice to her, too nice. “Do you want to talk about it? Maybe it’ll help? No pressure, though! I understand if you don’t want to!”

 Kyungsoo could not help but smile at that, at Jongin seeming so flustered and cute.

 “Thank you, Jongin, but I think I just need to take a moment to think things through,” Kyungsoo answered, before giving a small shrug. “Maybe I’ll spam you with text messages or something if I actually start figuring things out, but until then I think it’s something I need to figure out on my own.”

 Jongin nodded at that. “Fair enough. Let’s start stretching, then, so you can get back to your thinking. Probably better that way, I’d rather not have you run into a lamp post or something because you’re thinking too hard.”

 “I wouldn’t do that!” Kyungsoo burst out laughing, before sobering up a little. “I think, at least… Was I close to any trees?”

 “I mean, not  _ that _ close, but that might be because I woke you back up before you managed to get too close,” Jongin teased, earning himself a shove.

 And Kyungsoo’s cheeks were once more aflame as Jongin’s laughter washed over her, but she did not mind it too much. And she really needed to talk to Tao, because this was getting dangerous. For her heart, that is. She was going full fluff, and she had not expected that, not now, not yet. She barely knew Jongin, yet here she was, so close to the edge (refusing to acknowledge just yet that she had honestly already fallen over the edge).

 Yes, Kyungsoo needed a reality check, and maybe some advice. She was not used to the whole love thing. And she blushed even harder as she thought that, because needing love advice? She really was getting deep into it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, it didn't take like half a year to get an update? Just like two weeks? Holy shit, what is this even? It's not like I had like half of this chapter written like a day or so after the last update, ahem... But yeah, take silly young adults running, and silly Kyungsoo not wanting to realize she's in love yet! Because drama is fun, moahaha!  
> Anyway, next update might not be as quick, it comes and goes, but I'll try not to take too long, my lovelies! That made me think of Airi, hI MY LOVELY AIRI~ I SWEAR I'LL LET YOU KNOW WHEN THIS CHAPTER GOES UP, SORRY ABOUT TCAM<3


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